In 1972, violent riots took place in the Afrikaanderwijk in South Rotterdam. Goon squads stormed homes of Turkish residents and threw firebombs and rocks into Turkish guest houses in the wake of an escalated rental conflict. Eventually, Leefbaar Rotterdam, right after their political ascent in the Rotterdam municipal council, implemented the so-called “Rotterdamwet” (Rotterdam law). This law provided tools to repel home seekers without income from specific neighbourhoods with lousy quality of life and safety problems. This law was to prevent further deterioration of the situation in these areas. Marc Schuilenburg, Professor of Digital Surveillance at Erasmus School of Law, pleas for the revocation of this law in an essay in the NRC.
The Afrikaander Riots
The Afrikaander Riots, also known as the ‘race riots’ or the ‘Turks riots’, emerged from an escalated rental conflict between a Turkish landlord and a Dutch woman. In the days following this conflict, goon squads stormed the homes of Turkish residents and threw firebombs and rocks through the windows of Turkish guest houses where migrant workers were staying. Eventually, 82 people were arrested, primarily citizens of Rotterdam between 16 and 28 years old.
Although the direct reason was evident, in a later stadium, underlying problems also floated to the surface. These problems turned out to be a combination of racism, social distress, and thrill-seeking. Other factors also played a role, adds Schuilenburg: “amongst these problems are a housing crisis, impoverishment of the neighbourhood and the feeling that the municipality let things be for what they were and had no interest in the complaints of the residents.”
The conflict that had developed escalated even further a couple of days later. Youngsters from other neighbourhoods and cities came to the Afrikaanderwijk. They started turning against the police as well, to the point where the police officers had to execute charges to dispel the aggressive crowd from the neighbourhood.
Political intervention
Eventually, politicians decided to intervene. Several guest houses for migrant workers were closed, and the municipal council made a controversial decision to allow a maximum of five per cent foreigners per neighbourhood in Rotterdam. The court quashed this decision because it was inconsistent with international treaties. Eventually, Leefbaar Rotterdam – shortly after their ascent in politics – reintroduced the Rotterdamwet. The law offers three tools for selective housing allocation to improve the quality of life in neighbourhoods in Rotterdam. These tools exclude home seekers based on income, prioritising home seekers with certain socio-economic features and exclusion of home seekers that recently caused disturbance or have conducted criminal activity.
Effectivity of Rotterdamwet
Research shows that the Rotterdamwet has not contributed to a verifiable improvement of safety and quality of life in the neighbourhoods where it was implemented. Schuilenburg states that safety improvement can not be achieved with the law and a baton alone. There must also be worked on variables like care, trust and concealment. “Get rid of the Rotterdamwet and act on the needs of residents. Many of the problems from fifty years ago are existent to this day”, says Schuilenburg.