On Thursday, a judge in The Hague found that the Netherlands’ emergency shelters for asylum seekers were illegal because the government had not complied with the necessary European requirements.
The government must right now provide access to drinking water, medical services, and sufficient food, the court said. In addition, the court ruled that people who are ill or in late pregnancy shouldn’t be made to stay in emergency shelters.
The Dutch Refugee Council filed a lawsuit, which resulted in the decision.
According to the lawsuit filed by the NGO, funding reductions caused thousands of refugees to spend nearly a year sleeping in gyms or tents under “inhumane conditions.”
Hundreds of asylum seekers were also held in substandard conditions without sufficient toilets, mattresses, or security outside the crammed National Asylum Center near the village of Ter Apel on the German border.
Court rules that the Netherlands’ accommodations for asylum seekers are unacceptable
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