For decades Amsterdam was known as the world's 'Gay Capital', a place where gay and lesbian couples could kiss in public without worry, and where local homosexuals enjoyed levels of social acceptance and legal equality unimaginable elsewhere. A series of violent attacks on the openly gay have recently tarnished Amsterdam's crown. The city council has set aside 1.2 million euros to polish it back up.

The most high-profile incident came in 2005 when a prominent American gay man was assaulted on Queen's Day in Amsterdam. Chris Crain, chief editor of the Washington Blade gay magazine, was walking hand-in-hand with his boyfriend when he was spat on by a young man. Within seconds seven men surrounded him, beating and kicking him in the body and face. Mr Crain recounted the incident on his blog.

"For as long as I live, I will never forget the looks on the faces of our attackers. What I saw was more disgust than hate, but it was there, and it was chilling."

The gay community took notice. Pink tourism dollars have been shifting to other cities with vibrant gay scenes like Berlin and Barcelona. This week, the Amsterdam city council launched a three-year, 1.2 million euro campaign to turn the tide.

Zero-tolerance
The campaign tackles the issue from two sides, according to Freek Ossel, the Amsterdam city alderman responsible for social diversity. A zero-tolerance policy towards hate crime - in cooperation with police and the Ministry of Justice - will address safety, but the campaign will also focus on social initiatives to improve the lives of homosexuals in Amsterdam.

"We'll be taking all sorts of initiatives, paying attention to elderly homosexuals, fostering acceptance in sport, launching new self-help organisations. In short, not just safety but also the civil society side. And we think this will put us on track to becoming the Gay Capital we once were."

One of the safety initiatives is called 'Pink codes', a network putting gay people in touch with other people in their neighbourhood. Security cameras will also be installed in popular nightlife areas.

Hearts and minds
Among many ethnic and religious minority groups within the Netherlands there is little respect for homosexuality, according to Dennis Boutkan, chairman of the Amsterdam branch of the COC national gay rights association. But he adds that the problem is more widespread.

"Minority groups are not very positive about homosexuality. What we are doing now is getting up the dialogue about what homosexuality means and also gaining respect. But I'm not only talking about minority groups. The level of social acceptance is really very thin, also among Dutch people."

Mr Boutkan says he finds the city campaign very encouraging. He hopes it improves the lives of local gays and attracts gay and lesbian tourists back to Amsterdam.

"I'm pretty sure that with all the effort involved we can really make a turn."

It appears the COC and the Amsterdam city council are heeding a warning from Mr Crain, written after his attack.

"I hope our gay friends in Holland realise that it's a bit too soon to declare victory and go home, now that they've won their legal battles. Winning the hearts and minds of the people will be a much more challenging task."