Netherlands - August 2022

The Council of Europe has called on the Dutch government to improve its reception of asylum seekers. The main reception center, Ter Apel, situated near the German border, has left more than 700 people seeking asylum in the Netherlands without shelter, privacy, clean water, sanitation and food, leading Médecins sans Frontiers to deploy its first Dutch mission in order to provide basic healthcare. The death of a three-month old baby this month has prompted an investigation by Dutch authorities into the role overcrowding at Ter Apel may have played. The Dutch government has since announced new measures, including commitments to open a large emergency shelter nearby and to allocate EUR 730 million to the establishment of additional reception centers.

Sources: Al Jazeera, Medecins sans Frontieres, Council of Europe