Cabinet wants to send failed African asylum seekers to Uganda – NOS

Klever’s Uganda Asylum Plan: A Playful Yet Serious Take

Ah, Minister Klever has been off to Uganda! It seems she brought with her not just a suitcase full of development ideas, but also a shiny new plan for dealing with those pesky asylum seekers who just won’t pack up and leave the Netherlands. What could possibly go wrong?

The Basics of the Plan

So, what exactly is the government plotting? They’re considering the idea of sending failed asylum seekers to Uganda. Yes, that’s right—Uganda! When life hands you lemons, you send them to Uganda! Apparently, they think it’s a fabulous idea to offload rejected asylum seekers there and compensate Uganda financially. After all, who wouldn’t want to turn a beautiful East African nation into a makeshift deportation hub? It’s like making a travel agency out of a humanitarian crisis!

The Elephant in the Room

Now, I hate to rain on this compelling plan, but Uganda itself is *already* hosting over 1.5 million refugees. And guess what? Conditions there are frequently described as ‘poor.’ Food and water aren’t exactly luxurious amenities—and let’s not even mention the massive human rights issues. Uganda has a rather notorious reputation when it comes to the treatment of LGBTQ+ people. So, taking out an ad that reads, “Welcome! Escape from one misery to another!” sounds exceptionally insensitive, doesn’t it?

The Human Rights Dilemma

As Minister Klever cheerfully notes, Uganda is a “hospitable country.” Hmmm, ‘hospitable’ might be a stretch given that the country is notoriously hostile toward LGBTQ+ folks. It’s almost like saying a lion is a hospitable guest at a barbecue—great for the atmosphere, disastrous for the attendees!

So, how do we attract people to a place where human rights take a back seat to governmental incompetence?

The European Perspective

As it turns out, the Netherlands isn’t the only one with plans to offload its rejected asylum seekers. Germany wants to send its Afghan rejected party-makers to Uzbekistan, and Italy’s cooking up something that smells suspiciously similar in Albania. Meanwhile, the UK’s Rwanda plan… well, let’s just say it’s gathering dust in the attic of forgotten policies.

But What Do the Dutch Think of All This?

Guess what? The coalition partners in the Netherlands have previously expressed positive views about these ‘return hubs.’ It’s an idea that makes you wonder if residents in power have been watching too many spy movies, plotting to create secrecy where only the ill-fated should tread.

The Bottom Line

While it’s clear this idea is still in its *very* early stages, one can’t help but think: Are we seeing some clumsy attempts at humanitarianism mixed with a touch of political maneuvering? If so, then “return hubs” might just end up being the world’s first mildly funny tragedy. After all, “don’t let a good refugee crisis go to waste!” would definitely not make it onto a motivational wall poster.

So, dear readers, will Uganda become the new Ibiza for failed asylum seekers? There’s definitely a darkly humorous air to all of this, as officials champion their plans while the reality is far less glamorous. Let’s hope Minister Faber has a trick or two up his sleeve—because if this plan moves forward, Mother Nature herself might just roll her eyes and say, “Oh dear, here we go again!”

NOS Minister Klever in Uganda

NOS Nieuws•vandaag, 17:44

The government is exploring the possibility of receiving failed asylum seekers in Uganda. Minister Klever for Foreign Trade and Development Aid said during a working visit to that country that it is up to her colleague Faber van Asiel to develop the idea. The Ugandans are not unsympathetic to the plan.

Recently, there have been increasing calls within Europe to work on so-called return hubs. These are places outside the European Union where rejected asylum seekers must be received. From there they must return to their country of origin.

The Netherlands has focused on Uganda, a country in eastern Africa that is already receiving many refugees. The plan still needs to be further developed, but the gist is that African asylum seekers who have been rejected for asylum in the Netherlands must be deported and accommodated in Uganda. The country is then financially compensated for this.

This will involve rejected asylum seekers from countries in the region, and also from Uganda itself. Exactly how many countries fall under ‘the region’ needs to be negotiated. Because there is no deal with Uganda yet.

See below how many people who have exhausted all legal remedies (per country near Uganda) have been registered as ‘departed’ in the Netherlands this year. However, that does not mean that they have actually returned to their country of origin:

NOS

“Ultimately, we want to reduce migration. It is important for the cabinet that those who have exhausted all legal remedies return to their country of origin. And that is where things sometimes get stuck,” says Minister Klever. “We have a long relationship with Uganda and it is a hospitable country. And asylum minister Faber will further explore the possibilities.”

What kind of country is Uganda?

According to the travel advice of the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Klever’s own ministry, Uganda hosts more than 1.5 million refugees. Most of them are in areas near South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo, where many refugees come from.

Conditions in Ugandan refugee camps are “poor”, said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. “There is not always enough food and water.” It is not said that the ‘Dutch’ who have exhausted all legal remedies would end up in such refugee camps.

The ministry also warns LGBTQ+ people who want to travel to the country. “You may face strict penalties there, and even the death penalty.”

Klever does not want to elaborate further on the plan and refers to asylum minister Faber. Ugandan Foreign Minister Odongo said after a meeting with Klever that he was open to talks.

What people think about this in the Netherlands remains to be seen. All four coalition parties have previously expressed positive views about the return hubs. And the previous composition of the House of Representatives saw something in a plan to receive asylum seekers, who were still in the procedure, in Rwanda. Now it would concern asylum seekers who have exhausted all legal remedies.

Uzbekistan

Recently, other European countries have also been working on plans to transfer migrants to other countries. For example, Germany wants to send Afghans to Uzbekistan. Afghanistan’s neighboring country would then receive development aid in return. Germany has also promised to admit more Uzbek migrant workers.

Minister Faber recently said that he is also interested in a deal with Uzbekistan about taking in rejected Afghan asylum seekers.

Italy has built two reception centers in Albania, which have just been put into use. The country wants to receive migrants there who have little chance of obtaining a residence permit. And in Britain there has been talk for years about the intention to transfer migrants to Rwanda (a neighboring country of Uganda), but the new Labor government has given short shrift to that plan.

Reporter Albert Bos traveled with Minister Klever:

Cabinet wants to send rejected asylum seekers to Uganda

Political reporter Xander van der Wulp:

“Klever’s plan is still at a very early stage. If only because people are not yet allowed to be deported to a country other than the one they come from, with a few exceptions. There is talk at European level about making this legal. are changing and people are increasingly positive about it, but that is not the case for the time being.

Moreover, human rights in Uganda are in a terrible state, LGBTI people are persecuted there. So the question is how a return hub can be set up there according to Dutch standards. The plan has also not yet been coordinated in the Council of Ministers. This idea, as with so many issues surrounding asylum, is mainly about imaging. The mere possibility that you as an asylum seeker could be deported to Uganda should act as a deterrent.”