DUTCH BORDER TOWN PLANS DRUG DRIVE-THROUGHS

Move To Keep Buyers Out Of Town Labelled 'mcdope' By Locals

VENLO, The Netherlands - In a bid to keep German "drug tourists" and
the street dealers who serve them out of its downtown area, Venlo is
considering opening two drive-throughs where adults can buy cannabis,
hashish and marijuana from their cars before heading back across the
border.

Soft drugs are already available at 1,500 licensed coffee shops across
the Netherlands, but the drive-through scheme takes customer
convenience to a new level.

In Venlo, a town of 65,000 near the border with Germany, some coffee
shop patrons can hardly wait for what locals call McDope.

"It's a cool idea," says Michael, a young German visitor, puffing on a
joint by the Maas river. "We live in a fast-food world so why not sell
drugs like McDonald's sells hamburgers?"

But Venlo is trying to curb, not expand, its drugs
trade.

Encouraged by the open borders of the European Union, thousands of
Germans flock here each week to take advantage of Dutch laws allowing
adults to buy up to five grams of soft drugs.

Most of the day trippers are mellow and discreet, often buying their
pot from the town's five licensed coffee shops and heading straight
home. But others wander around town in a stoned haze, humming Pink
Floyd songs or staring obsessively at traffic signs.

Worse, brisk demand for more and harder drugs has filled the streets
with unlicensed dealers.

"It's not so much the drug tourists themselves causing problems, it's
the drugs scene that has grown up around them," says Elke Haanraadts,
who oversees Venlo's anti-drugs project. "People don't feel safe in
the town centre any more."

Despite its handsome brick buildings, the riverfront is a no-go zone
for many locals. More than 60 illegal drug dens peddle everything from
hash to heroin. Dealers roar through the streets at all hours in their
trademark Volkswagen Golfs, or loiter on the sidewalks pestering
passersby with offers of drugs. In the evenings, junkies shoot up in
the bushes along the river.

Ine, an interior decorator, avoids the area. "I never walk there," she
says. "It is a horrible atmosphere, very aggressive and seedy."

By putting the drive-throughs on the edge of town, nearer the border,
Venlo's officials hope to persuade drug tourists to "shop 'n' go,"
undermining the downtown drug market. Unlicensed dealers are also
facing firmer policing and eviction from their homes.

Even so, locals still despair over the state of their
town.

Along the riverside, property prices have fallen and several
businesses have closed. Nearby streets are lined with stores selling
drug paraphernalia, from glass water pipes to psychedelic lighters to
Bob Marley posters. Signs in windows offer magic mushrooms at bargain
prices

Though violent crime is rare -- dealers "protect" their streets and
are friendly to storekeepers -- the gangland atmosphere scares
ordinary shoppers away.

"I'm losing a lot of business because people are too afraid to walk
around here," says Diana Hulle, who runs a baby clothing store in the
drug zone.

Like other locals though, she wonders if drive-throughs are the
answer.

"If you make buying drugs easier, then maybe more people will come and
we will have an even bigger problem," she says.

There is also plenty of skepticism in Venlo's smoke-filled coffee
shops.

At Oasis, where the bartender sells marijuana from plastic containers,
customers lounge on sofas, smoking and listening to reggae music.

In between puffs, Frank, a middle-aged German with a pony-tail,
denounces drive-throughs as a sell-out to mainstream culture.

"Hashish is not the same as a hamburger," he says. "I don't want to
buy my stuff from someone in a pretty uniform saying, 'Have a nice
day!'

"A lot of people like the social aspect of the traditional coffee shop
- -- you chat to the owner, you smoke a little, hang out, listen to
music. And then maybe you go for a walk in town."

Anna, another German customer, suspects authorities would secretly
film cars at the drive-throughs. "You have to watch out for Big
Brother," she says. "Soft drugs are illegal in Germany so the legal
situation for us is very unclear."

Much of the Dutch drug world operates in a grey zone. Though
technically illegal, selling small amounts of soft drugs is tolerated.

The lack of legal clarity makes it harder for cities to control the
drug trade, but that won't stop Venlo from trying. The McDope
drive-throughs could open by the end of the year.

Like many locals, Karel, a father of three, is counting the
days.

"I don't care what it takes," he said. "I just want to get these
German stoners and their dealers out of our town."