Succesfull Regularization in the Netherlands, 2007 Rian Ederveen Stichting LOS
Outline • • • • •
Background: migrants in the Netherlands Asylum policy and solidarity-groups Regularization: criteria and effects Conditions for success After the regularization…
Migrants in the Netherlands Inhabitants Ethnic Dutch Migrant 1. generation migrant 2. generation migrant Countries of origin: Belgium Germany Indonesia Surinam Antillen Morocco Turkey
17mln 13,5mln 3,3mln 1,6mln 1,6mln (2,1mln) 110.000 380.000 380.000 340.000 140.000 350.000 380.000
Undocumented migrants 2005: EU: 12.000- 70.000 (40.000) Non-EU 62.000- 114.000 (90.000) Ex-asylum 1/3
Netherlands: immigration 2007 All countries
Europe
Non-Europe
Total
80.000
47.000
33.000
Labour migration
32.000
25.000
7.000
Family migration
25.000
12.000
13.000
Study migration
11.000
5.000
6.000
4.000
600
3.400
asylum
Netherlands: immigration 1995 - 2007 100000 90000 80000
Total
70000
Labour
60000
Asylum Family
50000
Study
40000
Au Pair
30000
Humanitarian Asylum Requests
20000 10000 0 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 Jaar
1998: insufficient Asylum Shelters
Government measures as reaction on Shelter-crisis: • 1998: refusal shelter to Dublin-claimants, people with Repeated Asylumrequests, migrants in other admission procedures (humanitarian) • from 1998: new policies to force rejected asylumseekers to leave shelter • new aliens act 2001: immediately after rejected asylum request no right to shelter • 2004: special removal-policy for rejected asylumseekers, number: 26.000
Solidarity Movement reaction on Government measures Private shelters, often with support from local governments (in 2004: 5.000 people in 100 local shelters from solidarity groups) AND: demonstrations, actions, films
Shelters Solidarity Groups
VluchtelingenWerk Nederland juni 2007
5
Elections november 2006
Regularization: criteria • asylumrequest before april 1, 2001 (new aliens act) • still in Netherlands included: asylumseekers with temporary staypermit; rejected asylumseekers; with doubts about age/ nationality; family members excluded: left the country, criminal offences Condition: local governments have to stop support to solidarity groups and shelters from 2009
Regularization: system • Special taskforce IND: quick process • People known to IND: automatic offer • People unknown to IND: majors’ letter of support, with help of solidarity organizations Number: 28.000, of which 9.000 really undocumented: either living in solidarityshelters or with friends
Pardonloket Amsterdam
Pardonloket Rotterdam
Background regularized group in Utrecht • Nationalities land van herkomst
China onbekend Afghanistan Azerbeidzjan Irak Soedan Sierra Leone
8%
2% 2%
9%
Guinee
20%
Algerije
2% 10%
2%
Armenie Angola Iran
2% 8%
3% 4%
5% 2%
5%
6%
5%
Somalie Sudan Syrie Mongolie overig Afrika
2% 2% 3%
voormalig Joegoslavie overig Azie overig Midden-Oosten
• Single: 60% • Ages
Conditions before regularization: people without government-shelter
Conditions after regularization Housing: completed december 2009
What made the regularization successfull? • political moment: prepared with political parties, decision immediately after elections • agreement between solidarity groups about criteria • generous criteria: most inhabitants of solidarity shelters regularized • solidarity groups and local governments involved in process: reporting, housing, jobs, education... • policy-change: temporary no new inflow of rejected asylumseekers • agreement with local governments to stop support solidarity groups; condition: government offers shelter for rejected asylumseekers untill return
Lessons learned from the regularizaton: • solidarity diminishes: public, media, local politicians • condition closing of solidarity-shelters is painfull • policy of forcing rejected asylumseekers to leave official asylum shelters didn’t change • policy change creates more rejected asylumseekers • although generous, non-asylum group was forgotten • no chance for new regularization any time soon
Struggle continues with new focus http://www.geenkindopstraat.nl/pages/gkos/youtube