De Fabel van de illegaal 60/61, Autumn 2003
Author: Ellen de Waard
Minister Verdonk's amnesty arrangement for some refugees who have been in the Netherlands for over 5 years meets with fierce protests. The refugees who are now allowed to stay, would for the most part have gotten a residence permit anyhow if former minister Nawijn hadn't made the foreign law more strict at the beginning of 2003.
Thousands of refugees have been living in stress for years not knowing their future. Most survive on medication against depression, stress and anxiety, which are a direct consequence of their flight and their being stuck in the Kafka like Dutch asylum machine. Neighbors, churches and refugee support groups protest against the arrangement on humanitarian and legal grounds. For years they have been calling for a government gesture, something like a general amnesty for a large group of refugees. The last two years a lot of city councils have joined the protests.
Criminals
Pressured by civil unrest and the threat of civil insubordination by several councils, parliament accepted an proposal by member of parliament Varela of the right populist Lijst Pim Fortuyn (LPF). He proposed a "limited arrangement for asylum seekers in harrowing conditions", a dressed down version of a LPF leader Pim Fortuyn's earlier plan to grant all integrated non-criminal refugees who live longer than five years in the Netherlands a permanent residence permit. As a result of the proposal minister Verdonk came with this new arrangement in 2003. It is already approved by parliament. Many people were shocked. The arrangement turned out to favorable only to refugees who after 5 years still have their first asylum procedure running and who have never been rejected in court.
According to Verdonk the arrangement applies to some 2.200 people. How she exactly knows how many? Well, she first estimated how large a group would satisfy mainstream society in order to break the protest. Afterwards she made up a couple of selection criteria and their political and legal justification. A few years ago this very same method was used by the creation of a special arrangement for the so called "white illegals", undocumented migrant workers who had been paying taxes for years. It is no coincidence that of them also 2.200 were calculated to be allowed to stay.
Reflexes
Official refugee support organization VluchtelingenWerk and the Council of Churches want an amnesty for all refugees who still have procedures running. The current arrangement is extremely limited and many supporters say they know nobody who can meet the criteria. Government parties react on the protest with the usual rhetorics. According to Verdonk the refugees are themselves responsible for the long time they have to wait. All refugees who have a second or third procedure running have been rejected at first, she says. You can't blame the government for keeping these people in uncertainty for so long. And the minister doesn't believe that many refugees simple cannot go back. "It's not about not being able, it's about wanting to leave", she maintains.
However, according to the Council of Churches the arrangement is "unfair to those who have legally, and using the possibilities the law offers, awaited the outcome of a follow up procedure". It's the government who is to blame. The mess of legal rules, the arbitrary declaring "safe", temporary measures and unjust politics which always doubts refugees, these are responsible for the delays. In the beginning of 2003 former minister Nawijn ended the so called three years arrangement. That arrangement automatically granted refugees a right to a residence permit if they are in a asylum seekers procedure but haven't heard from the ministry of Justice for over three years. The new Verdonk arrangement is in fact no more than a one time lengthening of this three year period to five years. Everyone who can now meet the criteria, could have also met those of the three years arrangement back in 2002.
As always the government talked about the so called "sucking effect", which a large amnesty would supposedly have on potential new asylum seekers. But the number of new asylum requests is now rapidly sinking, partly because the harsh new immigration law which has been implemented in 2001. Refugees who now appeal against negative court rulings are not getting housing, insurance or money anymore. And that's of course the prime reason why city councils have joined the protests. They are being confronted with thousands of refugees being left out on the streets. Contrary to national law, some councils have stated creating temporary shelters for them.
Adopt
Christian democrat spokesman Van Fessum criticized this civil insubordination by the councils. "They shouldn't make things too comfortable for those asylum seekers; they shouldn't get used to it." But refugee policy doesn't allow the refugees any other way. Those who have been in the Netherlands for a long time and are not considered "integrated" are not allowed to stay. But those who have "got used to it" should also leave. In spite of their humanitarian actions, the councils themselves also plead for a harsher and more active expulsion policy. "The biggest problem is that the return of rejected asylum seekers by the government is not yet enough organized. Except for the humanitarian problems, we also expect that this illegality will have its bearing in the field of survival criminality and public order", the mayors of the four largest cities stated. Due to the many local protests most councils do not want to get involved in the actual deportations. The think the anonymous national deportation apparatus is more suited for that.
The governing Christian democratic party CDA feels cornered by the churches who say that their policy is not very Christian or merciful. That's why Van Fessum came with a "merciful" plan: "Citizens should shift their vision and say: come, I will take you by your arm and we collect money for your return. In the future you can come and visit us twice a year on holidays." Caring citizens should in that way start taking part in the deportation machine. If Van Fessum was to decide, the "Dutch nation" would "mercifully" come together and as one help the foreigners leave. Not only are Van Fessum's plans completely immoral, they are also practically nonsense. All rejected and deported refugees are completely broke. But if they would somehow have the money to go on holiday twice a year, then they wouldn't be allowed in by the Dutch government which is afraid that these people will not leave again.
Opportunism
In Leyden a coalition of churches, official refugee support organization VluchtelingenWerk and some political parties protested Verdonk's arrangement. The local social democrat party PvdA was very active and supported the slogan "Leyden against deportations". That was in fact a bit exaggerated. For of course the social democrats in general have no problem with deportations. The social and Christian democrats only rallied for some 60 rejected refugees in Leyden. They did, however, plead for residence permits for all rejected refugees who have been in the Netherlands longer than 5 years. That is quite radical for the PvdA. It is striking how active this party participates in this whole asylum debate. Former ministers like Cohen and De Vries even called for a larger amnesty. When in opposition the social democrats always pose as being more humane and Left in order to channel anger in society and attract the Left voters, only to also start making right wing policies right after the next elections. We shouldn't forget that the social democrats were up front for a decade making immigration law more harsh every year, and implementing the administrative apartheid through the Linking Act which connects all state databases in order to exclude all undocumented people.