The protest started around noon and the demonstrators walked from Oosterpark, the Olympic Stadium and Westerpark to Museumplein for the so-called ‘commemoration of the coffee battle’. From there they made a tour of the center together. Most of the demonstrators went home around 5 p.m.
The activists chanted: “Love, freedom, no dictatorship.” When they were near the official residence of mayor Femke Halsema, they shouted “Femke rot.” The canal to the house was closed off by the police. The demonstrators carried banners with texts such as: “Children are our future. Not our guinea pigs.”
Several dozen demonstrators demonstrated against fascism along the route. They were previously at the Museumplein, but were moved by the police in three buses to the Max Eeuweplein. This place was shielded by the mobile unit. The square is now empty again.
Action group The Netherlands in Resistance organized the ‘commemoration of the coffee battle’ to commemorate the banned demonstration against cabinet policy on 17 January last year on Amsterdam’s Museumplein, which resulted in riots. The action group announced on Facebook afterwards that many new protests will follow in the coming week.
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tractors
About thirty tractors from Friesland, Groningen and North Holland, among others, also came to the Museumplein. The first ones had left at 1:00 AM to be in Amsterdam on time. Protest signs contain texts such as ‘together we are strong’, ‘don’t worry be wappie’, ‘we are tired of lies’ and ‘don’t use common sense 2g’. The farmers left at the end, honking their horns and with applause.
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The farmers say they are against the corona policy and want to make their voice heard.
Ⓒ UNN news agency (Robby Hiel)
The Amsterdam triangle (municipality, police and Public Prosecution Service) previously designated the locations of the demonstration as a security risk area, which meant that preventive searches could be carried out. The police took into account that people came to the demonstration with weapons or illegal fireworks.