War Memorial Cross Removed
War Memorial Cross was removed in Baarsjesweg, Amsterdam, after Moslems in the neighborhood said that it “disturbed” them. After protests of war veterans it was subsequently reinstalled.
The community of a Pakistani mosque (later the Turk and Moroccan mosques united their voices) asked to remove a cross raised after the Second World War as it “disturbed” them. The city council agreed to this demand and the Cross was taken away, 50 000 Euros were raised to replace the Christian monument with a “neutral” one. After the neighbourhood, the war veterans, the NIOD (Dutch Institute on War documentation) the CIDI (Center of Information and Documentation Israel) and the Church through the Bishop Mgr Punt had expressed their outrage, the council came back on its decision. The cross will be put back in 2008, when construction of the West mosque will be finalised.