The asylum reception in the Netherlands has arrived short period of time filled up. The pressure in the Groningen application center Ter Apel is now easing, but for weeks there has been too little space to accommodate newly arrived asylum seekers. After stagnation due to the corona crisis, the number of asylum applications in the Netherlands has been increasing every month since May, although it cannot be compared with the refugee crisis in 2015.
Earlier this month, the cabinet appealed to the provinces to receive asylum seekers. There are still too few extra reception places.
What about reception in Europe? We spoke to four correspondents.
Belgium: shelter already under pressure due to floods
The discussion about the reception of migrants in Belgium is not as big as in the Netherlands, but it is indeed a topic, says correspondent Aïda Brands. Belgium must also arrange sufficient reception for migrants. In September alone, 3,200 asylum applications were made, 700 of which were from Afghanistan. These are the largest numbers since the 2015 refugee crisis.
The government assumes that there is a temporary peak. Belgium does not expect a massive migration flow from Afghanistan. However, there are major problems with reception. The staff of the application center in Brussels been on strike for two weeks in protest against the high workload and lack of shelters.
extra pressure
The reception capacity has been under extra pressure since the floods this summer. A number of reception locations then disappeared or are used to receive Belgians who are without a home due to the floods.
In the meantime, the government is recruiting extra staff and looking for more reception locations. In addition, an amendment to the Asylum Act is being considered. Belgium no longer wants to receive migrants who have applied for asylum elsewhere in Europe. Under current legislation, an asylum seeker in Belgium has the right to be received, even if, for example, a procedure is already underway in neighboring Germany.
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