Amsterdam license alarm: licenses limited and NO 'foreigners'

[SuperFrank]

A few days ago I found out that the city council of Amsterdam changed some of the rules concerning the issueing of streetperforming licenses:

Now there will be a limit on the number of licenses they issue.
Although last season 103 licenses were issued and the limit is set to 100 (sounds not too bad ...), the tendency is a bad thing. Moreover, because the reason behind it is complaints. But, apparently the complaints are about musicians and street'sellers', not performers.
I guess this was the easiest way ...

Secondly, more shocking, is that anybody who is not an EU member, or doesn't have some kind of a residency permit, is considered 'illegal' and will not get a license. Period.

This is a result of some recent laws, which -shortly said- forbids the government to supply any service to any 'illegal' person. Issueing a license is a service in that sense.

Note that it doesn't matter whether you are in Holland for one week (as a 'tourist') or one decade.

Obviously this sucks, it goes against the concept of streetperfoming, it kills cultural exchange (hey, I want to steal some new lines...) and will eventually kill the pitch.

Besides, I believe it possibly conflicts with some other laws, which are pretty basic. So I think this could bring something positive. I got a local politician involved who is willing to stick his neck out for this, and their lawyer will look into it. But it's not their first priority.

At first the city council even refused to accept an application from an 'illegal' person, but now they want to accept it (they are obliged to).
Of course they will refuse a license to such a person, but at least then they need to make an official and motivated decision in writing, which eventually can go to court.
Coming monday I go with an 'illegal' person to apply for a license.

Also I am upset, because we are 'talking' with the city for almost two years about the overall upcoming new policy concerning streetperfoming, but this stuff was a total surprise and 'secretly' pushed through.

My plan is to make a website about this stuff, but due to lack of time it didnt happen yet: www.straattheater.info (http://www.straattheater.info)
I will post a message again as soon as the website makes sense.

Anyway, I figured some people would want to know about this ... ;-(

Further, if anybody has experience with a similar case elsewhere, or maybe a specialized dutch lawyer is reading this ;-) I would like to know. Any good idea might help. Maybe even bad ideas ;-)

We need some action!

SuperFrank
from tolerant Amsterdam, Holland.

[ 12-06-2003: Message edited by: SuperFrank ]</p>

[SuperFrank]

[quote]Originally posted by SuperFrank:
<strong>www.straattheater.info (http://www.straattheater.info)
I will post a message again as soon as the website makes sense.</strong><hr></blockquote>

Okay, the website is up and it makes some sense.

Btw, why is nobody responding? Is it because we are not Americans? Hmm ... maybe a new topic for the blabla forum ;-)

Frank

[Dom]

I'll respond Frank,

If it's any consolation the same thing has more or less happened here in Sydney (and as Sydney's Busking Policy seems to be the main model for all other councils, soon the rest of Australia).

Originally inserted because some moron turned up at Sydney customs with a downloaded busking permit form from the Sydney City Council website as his "work permit", we now have a clause that states that no non-Australian can be issued with a Sydney Busking licence without producing a valid work permit. For several years everyone has more or less thankfully ignored it (except when Haggis applied) but with the arrival of new Council staff recently it's been revived and apparently more severly implemented.

As for "action" other than lawsuits (expensive) IMHO only strong media campaigns seem to work against bureaucrats.

Dom
From a once tolerant Australia.

[nick nickolas]

That Sucks ......

Frank get a petition and we will all sign it we can get 1000's of names....

Good luck Frank (you can always pop over to London!)...
Nick

[GlassHarper]

Frank --

Thanks for the heads-up. I plan to be in Europe Spring/Summer 2005, first to attend a world gathering of glass musicians in Paris in February (Brrr!) then to busk throughout the E.U. with my glass harmonica. Having an aquaintance in Amsterdam I had hoped to make that my "pied a terre" (I know there are supposed to be some accents in there, but I don't know how to type them) whence I could travel to other venues.

Your note about the unreasonable stance of the community is most disheartening!

[SuperFrank]

Thanks guys ... ;-)

Dom:

I figured you might know something ... ;-)

Legally, there is a way to go to court not too expensive, but it's a looong story. This is how it was done 8 years ago with the voice amplification etc.. Two years, two cases, and two thou ;-( but we got it, and it was worth it - big time.

The problem is finding a 'good test-person'.
It's december, that's lowlow season here. The Polish statue decided to leave the country instead (hey ... their policy is working ...).

And finding the legal base for a case. It's all pretty complex, uncommon and relatively 'small'.

Yes, getting media involved is an important thing. I'm collecting contacts and started with getting things known.
But also in this it's low season: lots of performers are gone, scene quite lame. And to be honest, we are not that organized - hey its Amsterdam ;-) But I'll try to 'bundle' things.

A huge demo/festival would be great. And a massive petition. It should have been July ...

Nick:

[quote] Frank get a petition and we will all sign it we can get 1000's of names.... <hr></blockquote>
Yeah Nick, I just thought of it, please let us use your riot-fan database ;-)

Seriously, I think it's a good idea. But how to set such a thing up? It would only do something with LOADS of signatures.

[quote] (you can always pop over to London!) <hr></blockquote>
Thanks. Yeah, I remember London. Oof ... ;-)
But I learned a lot. I like it if other people can learn in Amsterdam.

GlassHarper:

As a musician you should be fine. There are some rules, like max. 30 min., no amps/drums, pitches, etc. (see the APV (http://www.straattheater.info/docs/APV_216_en.php)), but you don't need a license, you can just play.
Just make sure you don't joke or juggle inbetween your songs ;-)

Note all this is about Amsterdam only. Other cities and other countries in EU are (maybe totally) different. But I'm not a musician, I don't know ...

[quote] Your note about the unreasonable stance of the community is most disheartening!<hr></blockquote>
I think I don't understand this one ...

Frank

[ 12-18-2003: Message edited by: SuperFrank ]</p>

[theballoonman]

hey frank...
any help i can be...are you sure its not just a payment thing like i had.....
at your service.
mike shick
the balloonman

[SuperFrank]

Hi Mike!

Yeah ... I am pretty *** sure :-(

Payment is not the real problem. All you need is any address to receive the invoice and to pay by bank, or cash at the postoffice (cost some more). And some more patience for the longer procedure, especially since now there is no receipt anymore to show to the police.

I have seen people being asked for any 'prove of their residency status'. When they couldnt show it, the application forms were ripped to pieces on-the-spot.

All this foreigner-stuff is officially confirmed. I have been talking a few times since with that department, and the last conversation was basically "see you in court". They are obliged, convinced and determined to enforce the new policy.

When you told me that payment thing last summer, I 'smelled' already something ... They told me the reason was just that they don't want anymore cash at the counter, for security reasons. But looking back at it now, this was exactly the moment they were talking about 'foreign street artists' at the city council. But then, they never mentioned or announced anything.

Maybe we could have known or so, but high-high season ... I guess everybody was too busy to notice or to think ...

We see what we can do ...

Frank