Visitors to National Remembrance Day on Dam Square must reserve a place in advance | Domestic

A special website has been created for reservations. When booking, which can be made from Tuesday, people can choose a location and time slot for arrival. It is not possible to attend the commemoration without a reservation. You must also report to the pre-selected entrance points of Dam Square. These are on Damrak, Rokin and Paleisstraat. The other access points to the square will be cordoned off.

With the online reservation system, the National Committee for 4 and 5 May wants to kill two birds with one stone: Reservations keep track of the maximum number of visitors of around 10,000 people. And in addition, the reservation system must ensure that everyone who wants to come can actually come. “Think of people who have to come from far away to be there. Or people who have difficulty walking,” a spokesperson for the National Committee 4 and 5 May told NU.nl. In the first hour after the reservation system went online, about a thousand reservations have already been made, the spokesperson continues.

The police will search people at the three entrance points of Dam Square. Additional checks will be made for items such as flags, banners and signs. Those are not allowed. Discussions are currently ongoing about what to do with clothing and texts on T-shirts that could provoke a reaction and lead to unrest, the spokesperson said.

The Amsterdam triangle (mayor, chief public prosecutor, police chief) and the National Committee 4 and 5 May previously announced that the additional measures are being taken in close cooperation with the National Coordinator for Terrorism and Security (NCTV). The NCTV and police believe there is a chance of spontaneous protests or disruptions, but according to them the chance of an attack is not greater compared to previous years.

According to the triangle, the reason for the higher risk of disruptions is “the increased social tension and a great willingness to protest among the population, prompted, among other things, by the war violence between Israel and Hamas and the further tensions in the Middle East”.

Before the National Commemoration on Dam Square, there will be a silent procession in the capital. It starts at the Stopera, where the town hall is also located, and ends at Dam Square. A spokesperson for the municipality said that this tour will also be closely monitored. The same applies to the silent journeys and commemorative moments in Amsterdam. “Together with the National Committee for May 4 and 5, we as a municipality are in close contact with the organizers of the other commemorations,” the spokesperson said.

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