Rotterdam city hall daubed with red paint; Anti-asylum graffiti in Twenterand

Two city halls in the Netherlands were vandalized overnight. The Rotterdam city hall was daubed with a red liquid. And at the Twenterand town hall in Vriezenveen, someone spray-painted a message against the possible arrival of an asylum center.

The vandalism at the Rotterdam city hall on Coolsingel happened at around 3:30 a.m., according to Rijnmond. The message behind it is unclear. The police fenced off the entrance of the building and are investigating. The city called in a company to clean the building.

The graffiti has consequences for five couples scheduled to get married there today. They can’t enter the city hall through the main entrance but must use a side entrance. According to the broadcaster, group photos on the steps are also impossible.

The message behind the graffiti on the Twenterand town hall on Maintobaplein in Vriezenveen is more obvious. “ASC Weg Ermee” was spray painted on an elevation just in front of the building. That loosely translates to: “Gone with the asylum seekers center.” The municipality has cleaned it away.

Passersby told RTV Oost that someone spotted the vandal while they were spray painting and called the police. The police have arrested a suspect, they said.

Opening a possible asylum center is a hot topic in local politics in Twenterand. A majority in the municipal council wants the municipality to stop sheltering asylum seekers as soon as the new Cabinet abolishes the asylum distribution law, which obliges municipalities to take in their fair share of people.