"Squatting will go on!" For decades, this has been the national rallying cry of the Dutch squatters' movement. But if a current parliamentary majority has its way, their activities will soon be dealt a swift and lethal blow.
The Netherlands is one of the few countries in the world where squatting enjoys legal status, thanks to legislation introduced in the 1970s. Under this law, squatters have the right to occupy property left empty for over 12 months without a clear reason, unless the owner can prove that he needs the building urgently.
The law was born of an overwhelming sense of injustice in the 1970s that property was being left vacant at a time of acute housing shortages in the Netherlands. But according to a majority of present-day Dutch MPs, the conditions that justified the law no longer apply. Many argue that squatting leads to dereliction and dismiss the squatting scene as "criminal".
On Thursday, a parliamentary majority consisting of centre-right parties voted in support of the so-called Squatting Ban, a bill drafted by Christian Democrat MP Jan ten Hoopen. Housing Minister Eberhard van der Laan has already let it be known that he will not stand in the way of the bill. While not a fervent advocate of the ban, he regards non-occupancy as "an issue that's too important to be left to the squatters".
However, the new ban is not without its opponents. The big cities and the association of Dutch local authorities do not favour a blanket ban on squatting, fearing it will increase the number of buildings left vacant. And since local authorities are not obliged to enforce the ban, this legislative shift could end up bringing very little real change.
With their recent slogan "Brought to you with the support of the Squatters' Movement", squatters have been keen to focus attention on the positive effects of their activities. They have signalled their determined opposition to the new law by occupying a whole series of vacant properties. It may well take more than a change in the law to dampen the rallying cry "Squatting will go on!"
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