07-06-2010
On Monday, May 31, the Asta - the monumental building on the Spui in The Hague - was squatted on behalf of the cultural organizations TodaysArt, TAG, Teletekst is Dood, Shoot Me Film Festival, Villa Nuts, Langweiligkeit, Haagse Skate Unie, Paard van Troje, and The Generator. The cultural organizations aim to make a statement against the recent developments concerning the implementation of a new law that will bring into effect a total ban on squatting, the development of the Culture Forum 2018 in The Hague, and the proposed budget cuts on arts and culture. In addition to the organizations listed above, a number of other cultural organizations and individual artists have publicly stated their support of this initiative.
The cultural organizations emphasize the positive premise of this collective action and have indicated their willingness to consult with the owners of the building and other stakeholders to discuss the possibilities for the future. The aim is to only use the building until the stakeholders come up with concrete plans for the property. The initiative also aims to create support for exploring the great cultural potential of such a location in downtown The Hague.
On June 1st, the Senate approved a total ban on squatting. To highlight the positive aspects of squatting, the organizations refer to numerous examples of many of today's successful cultural organizations and hotspots (i.e. Korzo, Blue Attack, The Illusion, Theatre The Apple / Appel Theatre, Melkweg, Paradiso, Tivoli and many others) that have flourished due to the availability of cheap workspace and housing. Squatting has also resulted in the preservation of valuable historic buildings and cultural expressions. The ambition of the parties involved was to facilitate a positive cultural spin-off through combined efforts, activities and well-organized cultural entrepreneurship in this prominent area in the city centre, thereby giving both this area and the city in general a strong impulse of modern and urban culture.
After a week the fire department declared the Asta unsafe. The squatters left the building.