COA

Over the past decade, more than 2,500 children disappeared from asylum centers in the Netherlands, NRC reports based on figures from the Central agency for the reception of asylum seekers COA and guardianship institution Nidos. The COA registered these children as left "with an unknown destination". 

There is a serious shortage of reception places for asylum seekers in the Netherlands. The asylum centers are currently at full capacity, sheltering 27 thousand people. But from January 1st, around 37 thousand places need to be available, NRC reports based on internal documents from the central agency for the reception of asylum seekers in the Netherlands COA. 

The central agency for the reception of asylum seekers COA wants to spread asylum centers more evenly across the Netherlands, which means that new asylum centers will mainly have to open in the west of the country, Milo Schoenmaker, chairman of the COA board, said in an interview with newspaper AD.

The Dutch government must do more against child asylum seekers disappearing from asylum centers. Over the past five years, 60 minor Vietnamese asylum seekers disappeared from Dutch asylum centers under dubious circumstances, and nothing seems to be done about it, National Rapporteur on Human Trafficking Herman Bolhaar said to Nieuwsuur.

The employees of special reception locations for problem causing asylum seekers have major trouble with a growing group of residents who have addiction- or psychological problems. The employees can not manage the antisocial or criminal behavior of these residents, the Inspectorate for Justice and Security said, RTL Nieuws reports.

The Rotterdam-Beverwaard asylum center will stop taking in asylum seekers from safe countries following a number of incidents involving such asylum seekers in the center, Mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb wrote in a letter to the city council. This halt is being implemented in agreement with the COA, the central agency for the reception of refugees, RTL Nieuws reports.

Between April and August of this year, there were a total of 20 incidents in the asylum center, Aboutaleb wrote. "In the period from mid-August to the present, this number has increased to 69 incidents." 

Around a fifth of the Syrian asylum seekers who are proposed for asylum in the Netherlands through the so-called Turkey-deal, are rejected because of extremist sympathies or because their ideals are not in line with Dutch values, Paul van Musscher, national portfolio holder for foreign affairs and migration crime at the police, said to the Volkskrant.

Two residents of a villa district in Den Helder decided to stop plans for an asylum center housing 16 young asylum seekers on their street by buying the property involved themselves. The villa cost over 500 thousand euros, AD reports.

Amsterdam agreed to open the Netherlands' first separate center for problem causing asylum seekers. The central organization for the reception of asylum seekers, COA, hopes to have this center open and ready for residents by the fall, the Amsterdam mayor and aldermen informed the city council by letter, AD reports.

There is a lively trade in stolen goods at the asylum center in Delfzijl, Dagblad van het Noorden reports based on its own research. Both the police and central agency for asylum reception in the Netherlands COA say there is no evidence of this.

According to th newspaper, asylum seekers from safe countries such as Morocco and Algeria often go out to commit robbery and then sell what they stole. The paper writes that it bought sports shoes for about 15 euros, an iPhone 6s for 60 euros and a bottle of Black Label Whiskey for 5 euros. 

Staff memebers working at asylum shelters feel unsafe due to the "antisocial and criminal behavior" of hopeless asylum seekers from North African countries. The situation has become untenable", the works council wrote in a letter to the management of the COA, AD reprots.

The COA is the central agency for the reception of asylum seekers in the Netherlands. AD has a copy of the letter sent to the management in its possession.