The maximum number of asylum seekers in Ter Apel is still exceeded. In addition, the agreed 100 places for underprivileged asylum seekers are not available according to several council members. The local political parties are considering a new lawsuit.
The Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers (COA) must comply with the judge’s ruling on the maximum number of asylum seekers in Ter Apel at midnight on Wednesday.
Penalty payment threatens
On January 23, the judge ruled that the COA had 4 weeks to reduce the number of asylum seekers in the registration center in Ter Apel to less than 2,000.
From then on, COA must pay a penalty of 15,000 euros to the municipality every day if the asylum seeker center is too full. This amount can amount to a maximum of 1.5 million euros.
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Political parties in Westerwolde are considering a new lawsuit against COA for asylum reception
‘It just doesn’t work’
Political parties in Westerwolde are afraid that COA will not meet this deadline. “I try to believe that it is all possible, but we know that is difficult as a councilor of Westerwolde,” says Eize Hoomoedt, group leader Groenlinks Westerwolde. On Monday morning, more than 2,200 asylum seekers were still staying in the registration center. That is 200 more than agreed.
Klaas Buigel of the VVD Westerwolde understands the COA. “I have confidence that they want to keep to the agreements, but that they simply cannot,” he says. “I believe they are really busy with it, but in these 4 weeks there are not just any locations in the country. That takes time.”
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Not in proportion
Several council members are frustrated by the fact that the process availability location (PBL) in Ter Apel does not have the promised 100 places. The procedure for underprivileged asylum seekers is accelerated in this PBL reception location. This means they roam less around Ter Apel and the surrounding area, so that there is less nuisance.
But the separate, austere shelter for nuisance asylum seekers has hardly been expanded since its establishment. There are currently 20 asylum seekers staying there. The total number of asylum seekers in Ter Apel and the small number in the PBL are not in proportion, many council members believe.
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Incomprehensible
“The group of underprivileged asylum seekers is around 250 in Ter Apel,” says councilor for Westerwolde Municipal Interests, Marco Visscher. “That means that 230 of them are now not in the PBL and can more or less go about their business.”
Hoomoedt of GroenLinks Westerwolde finds it incomprehensible that the PBL is not full. “The intention was that there would be 100 places at the end of January, but that is not yet the case. I do not understand why there are not more nuisance perpetrators in the PBL, because now they are walking among the other people in the shelter and that is not good” , he says. Hoomoedt is referring to unsafe situations such as violent incidents that have occurred in the past year.
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What is a Process Availability Location (PBL)?
A process availability location is a simple registration and reception location for so-called disadvantaged asylum seekers. The chance that they will be allowed to stay in the Netherlands is small. There are stricter rules with this form of shelter than in a regular registration center.
It is a government test, partly created to do something about nuisance asylum seekers without prospects of a residence permit.
Go to court
As far as Visscher from Gemeentebelangen is concerned, a decision could be taken to go to court regarding the number of places in the PBL location. The VVD also wants to discuss with the council what is possible.
Hoomoedt of GroenLinks first wants to wait and see whether the COA can adhere to the judge’s ruling tomorrow on the maximum of 2,000 asylum seekers. “If they don’t achieve that, going to court is inevitable,” he says.
Realistic?
Wilt Meendering of CDA Westerwolde would like to consider going to court, but he wonders how realistic this is.
“The contract regarding the maximum number of asylum seekers in Ter Apel was very clear. But I wonder whether we can demonstrate that the number of nuisance perpetrators currently staying in the PBL is disproportionate to the 2,200 asylum seekers in total staying in Ter Apel.” , he says.
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Mayor to court
It is not the first time that the municipality has taken a step to court. For some time now, the COA has not been able to adhere to the maximum of 2,000 asylum seekers.
The mayor of Westerwolde Jaap Velema reluctantly went to court 4 weeks ago. He saw no other way to address the problems in the shelter.
Alarm GGD and inspection previously
“The consequences of the problems with asylum reception in the Netherlands have been disproportionately passed on to Ter Apel and its residents for far too long,” Velema said in January.
At the beginning of December, both the GGD and the Justice and Security Inspectorate raised the alarm about the situation in Ter Apel. They concluded that there was poor fire safety, violent incidents, methadone use and poor hygiene.
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2024-02-20 16:26:07
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