Yesterday the lower house of the Dutch parliament approved a bill which would illegalize squatting in The Netherlands, whereas now a “peace house” can be established in a building which has been empty for more than one year and also has no immediate redevelopment plans. The bill will not be a law until the upper house votes upon the issue.
The bill, proposed by the Christian Democrats, the liberal VVD and the Christian Union, would make squatting punishable by up to a year behind bars, or two in the case of violence.
In protest, the kraak (squat) community pitched a tent village in Den Haag. After the news that the bill had passed in the lower house, an uproar broke out in the tent village causing the parliament to take a recess and several arrests were made.
“Squatting is still a solution; Politics are still corrupt” From the squat community in Den Haag protesting against the bill to ban squatting.
The benefits of squatting in The Netherlands are many, including: a thriving anti-squatting industry, an end to speculation on property, maximization of space usage, and affordable housing for students (and anti-capitalists).
See more of the tent village
Read more about the bill
