It is a place that normally remains hidden from everyone: the asylum seeker center (azc) in Budel. 1,500 people camp here, all hoping for a new life in the Netherlands. The doors did open for the popular police vlogger Jan-Willem Schut. Together with local police officer Max from Budel, he shows how things work in the shelter.
What is immediately striking is the desolate appearance of the site. A stolen bicycle stored in the building, a filthy room full of washing machines, dirty hallways and smeared windows. “It’s true that it’s dirty here,” says local police officer Max. “But that is mainly the residents’ own responsibility.”
“You can actually see it as a large village,” says the local police officer. “But with little privacy. The residents, all with different nationalities, sleep here with five people in one room.”
In recent years there has been regular nuisance in the vicinity of the asylum seekers’ center. Residents of Budel complain about theft of bicycles and in shops, asylum seekers hanging around in the village and shops and pushy, intimidating behavior. “It’s a challenging job here,” Max admits.
Those who cause problems are taken care of at the very back of the asylum seekers’ center site, where there is strict supervision. “They have to walk a mile and a half to get off the property,” the officers said. “We try to prevent them from causing a nuisance in the area. When they return, there is always a bag check, because we don’t want drugs entering the site.”
Of course, positive things also happen in the asylum seeker center. “The children can go to school there, there is a lot of daytime activities for the refugees, and they can also do volunteer work,” said the local police officer.
Jan-Willem Schut’s entire police vlog can be viewed below:
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