The Council of State states Friday That care providers may also be punishable when they offer help to people without a residence permit. The Council writes this in an advice about an amendment that was submitted by the PVV at the end of June as part of the asylum measures Act. That amendment makes illegal stay in the Netherlands punishable.
Outgoing Minister of Justice and Asylum David van Weel (VVD) wants to adjust the Asylum Act, writes ANP news agency.
According to the Council, there would be “a real possibility” that providing assistance to someone who resides illegally in the Netherlands is seen as a form of co -perpetration or complicity. “If the care provider is involved more intensively in the foreign national, provides help for a longer period of time or contributes to the withdrawal of a foreign national to the government’s sight, there may even be a co -perpetration,” the council writes. “Even with limited forms of help, such as giving a cup of soup, there may already be complicity.”
The Council outlines various ways to prevent care providers from becoming punishable under the new law. A possibility is to completely delete the criminalization of illegal residence. And if the legislator does want to make illegal residence punishable, but not to provide assistance, then two adjustments are possible: converting the crime into a violation – as a result of which complicity is no longer punishable, although co -perpetrators continues to include – or a ground for punishment for humanitarian reasons or complicity remains out of prosecution.
Van Weel had asked for advice
The SGP writes Friday On his own site that the Asylum Act, following the emergency advice, must be amended. According to SGP member Diederik van Dijk, it is “unacceptable” that some forms of humanitarian aid can become punishable. The party has a decisive voice in the Senate, through which the proposal still has to go.
Outgoing Minister of Justice and Asylum David van Weel (VVD) had asked for the advice, because after a vote on the Law in the Lower House, the question arose or ‘individual behaviors from humanity or humanitarian aid’ – such as volunteering or the distribution of food – would fall under criminalization. When Van Weel could not exclude that, it led to fundamental objections to NSC and SGP, parties who initially supported the law.
Van Weel previously promised that articles about illegality would not enter into force before the Council of State advice was there and the House of Representatives has again entered into debate on this.
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In the House of Representatives, there was actually no majority for the criminalization of illegal residence, but due to the absence of a number of left-wing MPs and mistakes around the so-called ‘pairing’ system- in which proponents and opponents make agreements in a person’s absence to prevent an unbalanced voting result- there was nevertheless a little majority for the amendment.
The law has already been passed by the House of Representatives, but the Senate still has to vote on it. The support for the amendment proposal is uncertain there. For example, the SGP voted in the Lower House, but then the party said it doubted. In the Senate, the former coalition parties (PVV, VVD, NSC and BBB) are short of ten seats for a majority.
Social organizations reacted displayed on the PVV amendment of the asylum measures Act. They fear that people without papers will seek help less quickly and that care providers risk a criminal record.
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When help becomes a crime. In many European countries, helping illegal immigrants is already punishable
