We all know that the Dutch like a good feestje (party). So with the 5 PM evening lockdown in place for a couple of weeks now (and extended until January) — they had to get creative. The solution? An app!
Thousands of house parties have been organized with the help of an app called Amigos, reports the NOS. This goes against standing government advice to keep the number of guests at home to a four person maximum.
But are we really all that surprised? After all, Dutch youths are known for finding creative solutions to their lockdown-induced party detox — be it heading over the border to Germany or using apps and WhatsApp groups to dodge restrictions.
What’s the app about?
The app Amigos was developed prior to the pandemic with the noble aim to help tackle loneliness among young people.
With one lockdown following the other, the app has gained increasing popularity — and the 5 PM avondclock has notably boosted its downloads.
Founder Johanan Fraanje tells the NOS that in the last two weeks, the number of users went up from 109,000 to 184,000!
Thousands of parties every week
“It’s a bit like Tinder for social contact”, says Fraanje. If someone wants to organise an event, such as a house party, they can register it on the app. Amigos then shows it to other users in that area.
About 20,000 events are registered per week and 34% fall into the category borrel or feestje.
If someone is interested, they can ask to join in. It’s up to the organiser of the event to accept or reject potential guests.
Is it legal?
Obviously, having a house party — or any event, really — is not in line with current governmental advice at the moment. However, because having no more than four guests at home is only urgent advice, not a hard rule, Dutch party-enthusiasts happily take the risk.
The founder of Amigos brushes off all responsibility. “Like Facebook and WhatsApp, this is an open platform where users are responsible for what they organise themselves. It’s not up to us to forbid it,” he tells the NOS. He also says that doesn’t earn money from the app.
What do you think of apps like Amigos? Tell us in the comments!
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