Next time you're in Amsterdam's center at night, don't be surprised if the police stop you and search you. And seize anything that they deem to be a weapon. The Dutch daily Parool reports that a new local ordinance will be enacted which will give the police these powers. The mayor will designate certain "safety risk areas," in which several annual "weapons checks" will be held. But Amsterdam is not the first to go down this route. Last night in Rotterdam, the police cordoned off the center of the city and checked everybody to see if they were carrying weapons or munitions. A number of arrests were made. The northern port city of Den Helder will begin doing the same this weekend.

In Amsterdam, it's all part of a bigger scheme to reduce violence. Under the quintessentially bureaucratic moniker of "Updated Progam of Dealing with Aggression and Violence," 1.2 million euros have been earmarked by the city council to reduce violence. The other parts involve more CCTV cameras, checking for guns, "youth safety," strengthening "oversight," combating violence against the "overseers" (police and the like), safety in public transport, combating domestic violence and street violence in the nightlife areas.

That's quite a shopping list of "oversight" measures they have there. The goal? By 2006, the council hopes to have reduced the number of violent incidents with weapons by a quarter. Weapon-ownership (including knives and guns) amongst schoolchildren they hope to reduce by 80%.

Putting all of this together, it entails a substantial increase in government oversight of public life. Going for a night out in Amsterdam and many other Dutch cities means that you have to check some of your liberties at the door. Your own front door, that is. It is outright scary that you can end up being sealed into an area of town by police, and not let out before you've been searched for no other reason than being there. This is creepy stuff. Add the increased use of CCTV cameras and we're are one step closer to the Panopticon State as Samizdata would call it.

Will it work? Well, it is probably going to reduce casual violence a bit. It will have a deterrent effect on people. So in some sense, it will work, but it will come at a serious cost to personal liberty. The logical extension of this kind of government thinking is to have random searches of people's property, tag everyone with a transmitter and GPS system and forcibly implant thought recorders.

I have to go now; if you need me, I'll be at the store buying bulk quantities of tin foil. I'll need it for the hats.