Some of the asylum seekers who misbehaved last month in a bus from the Ter Apel application center have been told that their asylum application has been rejected. A spokesperson for the Immigration Service IND confirms reporting on this by De Telegraaf.
The IND reports that 27 of the people who misbehaved on the Holiday-Travel bus from Assen had an asylum application pending. Ten of them went through an accelerated procedure, their rejection followed within two weeks. The other asylum seekers were subject to different rules, which means that their procedure can be processed less quickly. But before the end of the month they too will hear the verdict.
The asylum seekers would be transferred by bus from Ter Apel to an emergency shelter in The Hague on May 25. On board they caused destruction and threatened the driver. He then turned around and went back to the registration center, where the group was separated. At the time, the Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers (COA) stated that asylum seekers from North Africa “have misbehaved terribly”.
State Secretary Eric van der Burg was furious about the incident. “It’s really outrageous. For my part they were kicked off the bus along the highway.” Prime Minister Rutte also reacted strongly. “Then your blood boils,” he said the day after.
The accelerated procedure in which the asylum seekers ended up is possible due to an ongoing trial by the IND and partners. If it is known that someone is (potentially) a nuisance, then that person will enter the accelerated procedure. This means that conversations are scheduled immediately and, where possible, rest and preparation time is remembered. “During the entire process, the parties make it clear that nuisance will not be tolerated, and that this is the reason for the fast process,” the IND said in an explanation.
An appeal has been lodged against the rejection in five cases, the IND reports. These will be on the agenda of the court in the coming weeks. The immigration service also says that the other people who received a rejection are known to the agency that arranges the departure in the Netherlands. Of the 27 people who had applied for asylum, ten have now left for an unknown destination.
The trial has been running since December 2022. More than three hundred cases have now been carried out in this way.