Arnhem will house ‘disproportionately’ many refugees: ‘We have to get rid of that crisis attitude’

The municipality announced this on Tuesday. The left-progressive city council, consisting of GroenLinks, Party for the Animals, PvdA and Volt, wants to set an example with the agreement. Arnhem wants to convey that it is ‘a hospitable city that generously welcomes refugees’. Councilor Paul Smeulders (asylum) does not expect that his ‘disproportionately large contribution’ to solving the reception crisis will cause problems, because according to him there is ‘support and capacity’ in Arnhem for aid to refugees.

Both COA and the municipality of Arnhem are critical of the current ‘snap-asylum policy’, in which refugees constantly move from one temporary shelter to the next. “We have to get rid of this crisis attitude,” says Alderman Smeulders. ‘This gives refugees a better start in a country, and at the same time provides clarity for our residents.’

The COA hopes that the ‘unique deal’ with Arnhem will be followed in other municipalities. “This agreement not only offers us clear agreements about the quality and continuity of care, but also gives us the certainty needed to invest sustainably in our facilities and employees,” says Joeri Kapteijns, COA director who held the meeting on Tuesday. announced plans in Arnhem. Kapteijns expects that the COA will have a shortage of 35,000 reception places for asylum seekers by the end of this year.

Cruise ships

Arnhem currently accommodates more than 2,200 refugees, but only a small proportion (467) in permanent housing. The majority, almost a thousand refugees, are staying on six cruise ships along the Rijnkade. Part of the agreements is that part of the temporary accommodation on the mainland will be made permanent. Local residents were informed about this on Tuesday.

To achieve a total of 1,700 future-proof shelters in Arnhem, of which 1,350 before 2030, 800 shelters will become part of a district yet to be built. Arnhem expects that an asylum seekers’ center as an integral part of a neighborhood will ensure better integration and participation of refugees. The COA says it has had good experiences with this in Winterswijk, where a neighborhood has been built around an existing asylum center. There are similar plans in Doetinchem and Barneveld as in Arnhem.

Big fence

“At the moment, asylum seekers’ centers are often parallel societies,” says councilor Smeulders. ‘Places with a large fence around them that you don’t easily go to. We want to change this by allowing asylum seekers to become a full part of the neighborhood. With so-called ‘participation desks’ for volunteers, lunchrooms and other neighborhood functions. As a city, we also hope to make use of the potential of refugees.’

In addition to permanent places, Arnhem will receive 250 additional temporary beds in two hotels. It is also being examined whether the six cruise ships at the Rijnkade can be used for longer after this year to receive asylum seekers.

The agreements between Arnhem and COA are not just about numbers. It has also been established that reception facilities in Arnhem will not be reduced over the next thirty years and that no ‘prison-like’ situation will arise, as the councilor calls it. This means that the number of square meters per person will not be compromised, for example by housing more refugees per room.

If there is a right-wing cabinet led by the PVV, Kapteijns of the COA does not expect that the agreements with Arnhem will be nullified. ‘The chance that these 1,700 places are not needed is very small.’