Amsterdam squatters move into Amstelveen building

We Are Here, a group of failed asylum seekers who have been squatting in buildings in Amsterdam for years, moved into a building on Groen van Prinstererlaan in Amstelveen. The group hopes to be able to stay in the vacant office building for a while, so that they have "the time to work on our asylum procedures", among other things, a spokesperson said to Het Parool.

On Monday We Are Here had to leave the buildings they've been squatting in on Rudolf Dieselstraat in Amsterdam Oost. They moved to a old bowling alley on Buikslotermeerplein in Amsterdam-Noord, according to the newspaper. The group also tried to squat in buildings on Hoog Kadijk and Weesperzijde, but in both cases there were already people in the buildings.

The new Amsterdam city council want to open a 24-hour shelter for asylum seekers who have exhausted all legal options, but We Are Here does not intend to make use of this. The shelter only solves their housing problem for a maximum of 18 months. "We want a definitive solution for our situation", a spokesperson said to Het Parool.