The Red Cross will support the reception of asylum seekers in Ter Apel. The aid organization will provide basic facilities on the site of the registration center, the Immigration and Naturalization Service (IND) reports.
Due to the enormous crowds, asylum seekers have had to stay on chairs and on the floor in waiting rooms of the registration center at night and now also during the day for almost two months.
The Red Cross will place a tent with showers at the registration center. It also provides extra blankets, air mattresses, hygiene kits and shower supplies for people staying in the waiting rooms to use. Volunteers help with, among other things, distributing the items. “People are not going to stay in tents,” an IND spokeswoman emphasized.
“The deployment of the Red Cross is necessary because the IND waiting rooms have been used every night for almost two months to accommodate asylum seekers. Some people spend several nights in a row on chairs or on the floor,” says the IND . “It is now also necessary to use some waiting rooms for reception during the day. The IND waiting rooms are not suitable for long-term stays, which is what is happening now.”
Director General of the IND Rhodia Maas calls the situation dire. “Due to the shortage of reception places, the entire asylum chain is at a standstill. The employees in Ter Apel do what they can to provide people with basic needs such as shelter, food and basic hygiene. But our waiting rooms are not suitable for reception and our organization is not prepared for this. focused.”
Maas says he is grateful that the Red Cross is coming to help. “But this is not a sustainable solution. The IND is responsible for the registration process in Ter Apel and the further asylum procedure. To prevent this from getting further stuck, additional reception locations must be made available quickly.”