Sunday 23 January 2022

Police to text message 3,500 drug users after seizing dealers' phones

Police to text message 3,500 drug users after seizing dealers' phones

Police in Nijmegen will send a text message on Monday to 3,500 drug users, whose phone numbers they found on dealers’ telephones, pointing out where they can get help. The numbers were found on phones from a dozen or so dealers who were picked up following a major investigation into a local drugs gang. Ten people will appear in court later this year. Nijmegen police chief Lonneke Hordijk said they had been shocked by the messages found on the phones,... More >

Keep the faith: church of (comic) reason

Keep the faith: church of (comic) reason

The heart of Amsterdam’s nightlife district was dead, but inside the doors of De Balie on Friday night, a new kind of faith-based service was going strong. Fifty brave souls signed up to the first communion of The Philosophical Society; the Community of Reason, a new denomination registered at the Chamber of Commerce this week. Its purpose, apparently, is to celebrate life, real-life debate and performance…on this occasion, with the help of three comics and a compere (sorry, ‘pastor’). Although... More >

Questions over state-funded sex care

Questions over state-funded sex care

Questions have been raised in Amsterdam city council after a man with a form of muscular dystrophy has apparently been refused state-funded ‘sex care’ recommended by his doctors. Yassmine el Ksaihi, D66 councillor and spokeswoman on poverty and participation, said that she had been forwarded a letter from an Amsterdammer told that ‘sex care’ would no longer be refunded by the council, through the GGD public health institute. ‘We received a letter saying that the man had been refunded through... More >

Dutch priest's beatification on hold

Dutch priest's beatification on hold

A Dutch Jesuit priest who was shot dead in Syria in 2014 may not be beatified after all, according to newspaper Katholiek Nieuwsblad. The main reason for the hitch, the paper said, is comments Frans van der Lugt made in 2009 or 2010 about the sexual abuse scandal within the church. He is said to have told a group of visitors to his religious community in Homs that he found the focus on the abuse claims exaggerated and is said... More >

Fewer people die than expected in January

Fewer people die than expected in January

Fewer people than expected died last week – the first time in six months this has happened, according to national statistics agency CBS. Some 3,250 people died in the second week of the year, around 100 fewer than statisticians had previewed. The drop is probably due to the lockdown, the booster campaign and the fact that the Omicron variant of coronavirus seems to be less lethal, the CBS said. However, further research is needed to establish exactly why fewer people... More >

The Voice sex abuse scandal deepens

The Voice sex abuse scandal deepens

A YouTube documentary about sexual intimidation and abuse surrounding The Voice of Holland talent show has detailed a long list of claims about sexual abuse, inappropriate comments and behaviour and even one instance of rape. The long-awaited programme, broadcast on Thursday afternoon, involved statements from dozens of anonymous women who were contestants on the show. One former contestant accused rapper and show coach Ali B of raping her eight years ago, when she appeared on the show as an 18-year-old.... More >

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