The Dutch government continues to reject allowing Syrian refugees to visit their homeland, despite a proposal recently approved by the Dutch parliament, which aimed to give refugees the opportunity to assess the situation in Syria without affecting their legal status in the Netherlands.
اضافة اعلان
The proposal, titled "Go and See," would have allowed one person from each Syrian family to travel to Syria to visit their homeland and return to the Netherlands without jeopardizing their residence status. This proposal was supported by some parliamentarians, such as Kati Piri and Henry Bontebal, who called for refugees to be allowed to compare the situation in Syria to determine whether it was safe to return.
However, the Dutch cabinet stated that this proposal contradicts asylum laws in the Netherlands. The Dutch Minister of Migration and Asylum, Wouter Koolmees, explained that allowing Syrian refugees to return to Syria would indicate that the "fear associated with seeking asylum no longer exists." Therefore, if they travel to Syria and return safely, they would lose their right to asylum in the Netherlands.
Koolmees also added that, despite some improvements, the situation in Syria remains severely affected by issues such as the destruction of homes and damaged infrastructure, which does not necessarily reflect a need for asylum. On the other hand, the Dutch government continues to support the voluntary return of Syrian refugees, offering financial assistance and covering the cost of flight tickets for those wishing to return permanently to Syria.
These disagreements come amid ongoing efforts to pressure Syrian refugees to return to their homeland, in line with the current policy followed by the Dutch government, despite the ongoing security instability in Syria.
It is worth noting that the Netherlands hosts over 160,000 Syrian refugees, some of whom have obtained Dutch citizenship, while others are still waiting for their asylum requests to be processed.
