The Netherlands bans sale of 'magic' mushrooms
The notoriously easy-going Dutch drug laws will be changed to ban the sale of "magic" mushrooms, the government announced today.
Under the country's tolerant approach cannabis is technically illegal but police do not prosecute people for possession of small amounts, and it is sold openly in designated cafes.
Possession of hard drugs like cocaine and ecstasy is illegal. Mushrooms will fall somewhere in the middle.
The ban will be imposed within a few months, a spokesman for the Justice Ministry said.
"We intend to forbid the sale of magic mushrooms," he said. "That means shops caught doing so will be closed.
"We're not talking about a non-prosecution policy, but we'll be targeting sellers," said a spokesman.
Psilocybin, the LSD-like main active chemical in the mushrooms, has been illegal under international law since 1971.
However, mushrooms that are fresh and unprocessed continue to be sold legally in the Netherlands, on the theory that it is impossible to determine how much of the naturally occurring substance any given mushroom contains.
"The problem with mushrooms is that their effect is unpredictable. It's impossible to estimate what amount will have what effect," said the spokesman.
The policy was reviewed after 17-year-old French student Gaelle Caroff jumped from a building after eating psychedelic mushrooms on a school visit to Amsterdam.
Her parents blamed their daughter's death on hallucinations brought on by the mushrooms, though the teenager had suffered from psychiatric problems in the past.
Photographs of her beautiful, youthful face were splashed across newspapers around the country.
Since her death, other dramatic stories involving mushrooms have been reported in the Dutch press, though mushroom sellers complained that each of the cases involved tourists who were using other drugs and alcohol at the same time - contrary to their instructions for taking mushrooms.
Mushroom sellers said they should remain legal but only adults should be allowed to buy the drugs.
Amsterdam Mayor Job Cohen had suggested a three-day "cooling off" period between ordering them and using them.
Most mushrooms sold in Amsterdam are bought by tourists, and the city's reputation for liberal drug policies and legalised prostitution are major tourist attractions.
