The asylum seeker reception centre in Ter Apel was able to comply with its legally imposed capacity last weekend but the solution is only temporary.
1935 asylum seekers stayed in Ter Apel on Saturday. This makes it the first time since October 2023 that the centre is complying with the administrative agreement of limiting capacity to 2000 people, according to the Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers (COA). The agreement was made between the COA and the municipality of Westerwolde, where Ter Apel is located. The adherence comes three days after the deadline set by a judge last month, in response to summary proceedings initiated by Westerwolde, due to the capacity violations.
Despite the COA’s accomplishment, the battle against overcrowding is far from over. The surpassed capacity was addressed by moving some asylum seekers to the emergency shelter in Biddinghuizen, but this is set to close by April 7th, according to RTV Noord.
Moreover, the COA warns of further shelter shortages for asylum seekers. This is due to an increased influx of refugees, the closing of emergency shelters, waiting periods for permit holders to get a home, and longer waiting times to process asylum applications. The agency predicts that there will be a shortage of 5500 places by the end of March. Throughout the last week, representatives of the COA have called for further support from governmental bodies.
“It is in everyone’s interest that we are quickly working towards a stable reception landscape. But we cannot do this alone. The COA needs the help of the municipalities in this regard,” said the chairperson of the COA board, Milo Schoenmaker, in a press release.
The Groningen judge’s ruling gave the COA until February 22nd to address the overcrowded centre. A penalty was set at €15,000 per day the capacity was surpassed. Although the COA did not appeal the ruling, it stated its disappointment in the lack of consideration of the reduced availability of shelters within the country.
The Spreidingswet treedt or Spreading Act, which aims to distribute asylum reception across municipalities more evenly, came into effect earlier this month. Nonetheless, the COA does not expect to see the full effect of this law until next year.
[Photo credit: Inge van Mill]
