Police-union chief declares his nation like a 'narco-state'

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The chairman of the Netherlands' largest police union says his country is has "the characteristics of a narco-state," with a parallel economy run by organized crime.

"Sure we're not Mexico. We don't have 14,400 murders. But if you look at the infrastructure, the big money earned by organized crime, the parallel economy. Yes, we have a narco-state," the BBC reported Jan Struijs said.

The reaction was triggered by a recent murder case that the BBC said "went far beyond the bubble of the criminal underworld," destroying the idea that "drug cartels only kill their own."

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A lawyer representing a government witness against two wanted suspects, Derk Wiersum, was shot dead in front of his wife outside their home in Amsterdam.

"This is meant to frighten us," prosecutor Fred Westerbeke said in the report.

The U.K.'s Christian Institute noted the Netherlands is considered a global hub for synthetic drugs, including crystal meth and LSD. It produced 16 billion pounds in 2017, worth more than $21 billion.

Struijs explained: "Lawyers, mayors, police officers – we’ve all been threatened by organized crime. All the alarms have been sounding but the politicians have been naïve. Now it's rotting the concrete of our society."

The institute cited a poll that found 59% of the Dutch believe the country is dependent on its illegal drug trade.

Peter Hurst, a mental health nurse, warned that it starts small, with moves such as the legalization of marijuana.

That only "endorses and normalizes the idea that the drug is safe, which it isn't," he said in the report.

An analyst told the BBC that such acts of brutality are increasing, citing a recent shootout that left two young boys dead, a mother murdered in front of her children, a severed head outside a coffee shop and the murder of a government witness's brother.

The BBC said that even before Wiersum's murder, a report commissioned by the mayor of Amsterdam in August described the capital as a "Valhalla for drugs criminals."

Justice Minister Ferd Grapperhaus said he doesn't believe the nation is a "narco-state" yet, but is in danger of becoming one.

The BBC explained: "The Netherlands has in a sense created the perfect environment for the drugs trade to flourish. With its extensive transport network, its lenient drug laws and penalties, and its proximity to a number of lucrative markets, it is an obvious hub for the global narcotics flow."

Struijs pointed out the efficiency of the industry.

"On the day Donald Trump became president, the first distinctive orange 'Trumpies' ecstasy tablets were found in Schiphol; 24 hours later they were on sale in Australia," he said.