Mayor Eric van Oosterhout van Emmen and his Groningen colleague Jaap Velema of the municipality of Westerwolde want extra measures from the ministry to remedy the increasing nuisance caused by asylum seekers from safe countries in their municipalities. They have requested a meeting in The Hague with Minister Yesilgöz-Zegerius of Justice and Security and State Secretary Eric van der Burg of Asylum and Migration.
Ter Apel, located in the municipality of Westerwolde, has been experiencing serious nuisance for years due to the application center for asylum seekers in the village. Surrounding villages are also seeing more and more problems, such as home burglaries, vandalism, intimidation and shoplifting. To date, the measures taken have not been enough to remove the nuisance.
Van Oosterhout recognizes these problems, especially around the village of Nieuw-Weerdinge in his municipality. “We have taken a whole series of measures in Nieuw-Weerdinge, but the situation remains precarious and downright worrying due to the safety of people who walk the route from Emmen to Ter Apel.”
Cameras have been installed in the municipality of Emmen and street coaches, boas and the police have been deployed. But this has not led to the disappearance of the problem. “It’s mopping with the tap open,” says van Oosterhout. “You take measures, intensify the use of street coaches and boas, and yet the nuisance persists. That is extremely frustrating for the residents.”
The mayor believes that additional measures are necessary, especially in view of the expected additional influx to Ter Apel and the absence of the dispersal law. It is not yet known when the conversation should take place in The Hague, but the mayors indicated that it is urgent.