Citizen participation speech by Mousa from Nijmegen Lent AZC

The Netherlands does not have a refugee crisis. Some Dutch media might claim that we do. And this soundbite gets regurgitated over and over again. But this is a political/social issue largely unsolved because of fear, racism and selfishness.

The people who are actually impacted almost never get a say. Tonight (18-09-2024) we saw a welcome change from that trend. Mousa (a refugee from the Nijmegen Lent AZC) spoke during a ‘politieke avond’ (political evening) in the Nijmegen municipality council meeting. He voiced his hopes, concerns and grievances about the way the Dutch system is leaving him and his friends stranded between a rock and a hard place. Extending the waiting period for Asylum Procedures is an inhumane way of treating people. Mousa spoke of broken promises, pushing him and his friends further away from a society that they want to participate in.

The Dutch immigration system is a congested moloch and an absolute disaster. Not because of the so-called “crisis” but because of the unjust, bureaucratic and rascist policies of different Dutch political and administrative entities. Nijmegen must do everything in its power to counter the racist venom that has been seeping into the Dutch political system for years now; show the Dutch public that we CAN make positive and swift change.

Foto: Obed Brinkman