As this year’s Cannabis Cup in Amsterdam was supposed to open its doors for five days of weed worship on Nov. 23 … it didn’t open its doors.
Amsterdam Cannabis Cup attendees were being turned away by High Times officials and venue staff at the Melkweg on Sunday morning because the mayor’s office had issues with the event and was threatening to arrest those ignoring its warning, organizers said.
Trouble in Amsterdam:
A special report from The Cannabist
Trying to move on: Amsterdam Cannabis Cup opens doors for Day 2, but crowd frustrated
Live from Amsterdam: Our pot critic’s view of “scattered” Cannabis Cup scene
“For everybody’s safety, nobody wants to get busted,” a representative said outside the Melkweg to a group that had gathered there on Sunday, as seen in the below video. “Right now the Cup is still on, but this day is fucked.”
Cannabis Cup organizer High Times is encouraging people to head to Amsterdam’s coffee shops and keep an eye on their website for further updates.
A few of our favorite strains: 25 ranked reviews from our critics
“This morning we were informed that if were to proceed with the Cannabis Cup Expo the event would be shut down and all participants would be arrested,” High Times wrote on Sunday. “In the 26 years of the Cannabis Cup, there has never been any health or safety issues, nor has there been any lawlessness on the part of attendees.”
The magazine called the mayor’s sudden move “extra-legal intervention.” Some of the events will continue as scheduled, but others will be relocated, High Times said.
“We want everyone to know that seminars will continue as scheduled on Monday and Tuesday at the Melkweg. We will announce the location of Wednesday’s and Thursday’s seminars in the next 24 hours. Concerts and the Cannabis Cup awards show remain scheduled.”
The mayoral intervention was news to High Times on Sunday morning.
“From the onset, we were informed by our lawyers, who were were working with the Mayor’s office, that as long as we remained compliant with local regulations, we would be allowed to proceed. We have strenuously tried to meet those standards and go beyond them.”
The magazine included an apology to its vendors in its news post.
“We want everyone to know that we would never have allowed vendors to set up, nor would we have had opened the doors to the Expo without assurances from the Mayor’s office that we were under compliance.”
