the Linking Act, coping-stone of the Aliens policy, end 1995
short explanation of the Linking Act, end 1995
The Linking Act
coping-stone of the Aliens policy
For the last years the Aliens policy has been made stricter in
every aspect. Stricter rules for application of family-reuni-
fication, 'gate-checks' at Schiphol, mobil surveillance of
foreigners at the borders, 'limited' identification duty.
These are only a few examples of measures taken to 'discoura-
ge' asylum-seekers and immigrants to come to the Netherlands.
Soon the parliament will take a new step in the closure of the
Netherlands: the Linking Act, an Act which will link different
computersystems which register foreigners.
The 'right' to nearly all welfare facilities will be directly
linked to status of residence. By linking all government
computersystems with that of the foreigners police, the go-
vernment wants to increase the control over foreigners. Civil
servants will be used as an extension piece of the foreigners
police in the checking of foreigners. Black and colored people
and people with a 'strange' name will be checked much more
often than before. In principal the checks will take place at
all facilities, both of national government, the community
council, social security insurances and organisations of
employees. The Linking Act will exclude all people with a less
than perfect status of residence from the right of those
facilities, but also those who are still in procedure, are
tolerated or non-expulsible, will be excluded.
The Linking Act: exaggerated, dangerous and racist
The consequences of the Linking Act will mainly come down on
the shoulders of migrant communities. Through the restrictions
of the Aliens policy the last few years, many people are on
the balance of legal residence. The Linking Act creates a
group of people who reside here but are not allowed to use
(welfare) facilities. In 1992 the Social Security Service of
The Hague published a report about "Life, living and labor of
illegal foreigners in The Hague." This showed that immigrants
without a residence permit were strongly dependent on each
other or fellow-countrymen who live here legally. The first
reception, helping to find work and a place to live and sup-
port during periods of unemployment is all arranged among
themselves.
Besides this the checks will have a strong influence on the
position of immigrants. With the Identification Bill immi-
grants already have a bigger chance to be checked, with the
Linking Act an administrative apartheid will arise. Discri-
mination on the basis of appearance and color seems inevita-
ble. Research in to the use of welfare facilities by illegal
foreigners, by Clermonts, van der March and Terweijden in
1990, showed strong differences in the way the institutions
work. In one place checks of nationality took place on the
basis of a suspicion that the applicant didn't have the Dutch
nationality, this suspicion was based on appearance. In other
places civil servants systematically asked for identification.
Not all offices asked for residence permits of suspected non-
dutch people. Where it did happen it was exceptional that
someone didn't meet the requirements.
Consequence of the Linking Act will be that immigrants without
a residence permit and tolerated refugees, whose residence is
reviewed every year, will be isolated further. Instead of
creating understanding for their position, the politicians
increase the lack of it. Less than now the specific situation
of the people involved will be taken in to account. The
Linking Act is an exaggerated law. One of the myths about
illegals is the presumed misuse of welfare facilities. In
practice most illegal immigrants contribute to the Dutch
economy. To check a very small group of people an Act is
introduced which will work out very badly for a lot of people.
Civil servants will play an important role in the checking of
status. The strange situation will occur that people, who
chose to work in care-, education- or welfare sector, will
have to do a repressive task as well. As is showed in this
newsletter many people in those professions have a problem
with that. Which teacher will be able to send a child from
school after 4 years and which doctor will stop treating a
patient. With the Linking Act the government builds a society
of traitors. A mentality will rise in which it is normal to
exclude and report others.
Coping-stone of the Aliens policy
Control, command and expulsion are the magic words of the
Aliens policy at the moment, a policy which has been build
since the end of the eighties. With the agreement of Schengen
the member-states started to adopt a general asylum policy.
Common visa's, outer border checks, fines for air companies
who transport people without documents, boarding checks in
counties where many 'asylumseekers without a chance' come
from. All these measures make it increasingly difficult for
refugees to enter Europe. In the same time an inflation of
status took place. The status of refugee is given to hardly
anyone; the tolerated status (person with exceptional leave to
remain) was formalised with the Aliens Act of 1994; the pos-
sibility of appeal was abolished for asylumseekers (later it
was again introduced in a limited way); special courts for
foreigners were set up. These measures had as goal to effec-
tuate the Aliens policy. Coping-stone will be the, soon to
open, 'removal' centre in Ter Apel. Besides the new iron
curtain at the Oder/Neisse border, between Germany and Poland,
and the militarisation of the Southern borders of Europe, the
internal control has been integrated as well. In most
countries a Law on identification was already existent, the
Netherlands gently complied. In 1994 the 'limited' iden-
tification duty was introduced, especially meant to intensify
the internal supervision of foreigners. To execute this super-
vision mobile brigades of the Marechausse (military border
police) have been installed. In 1995 800 extra police officers
were placed at the foreigners police. One of their main goals
is to work with the Foreigners Administration System (VAS).
The VAS has already been introduced in the whole of the
Netherlands. It is a control and registration system, most
suited for the execution of the Linking Act. In streetchecks
the police is now able to check information immediately.
Exclude, already excluded
The discussion about the exclusion of immigrants without a
residence permit has been going on for 17 years. Through the
years proposals have been made, of which most are now in
effect.
First it was the exclusion from WW (unemployment benefit) and
WWV (new unemployment benefit act), a couple of years later a
proposals was made to exclude illegal foreigners from legal
aid.
In 1986 the government wanted to extend the control of status
of residence to the offices of national and local government.
This Bill was soon known as the 'Pass Laws', a reference to
the apartheid system in South-africa. Civil servants would
have to check every foreigner. But would it not be obvious
that these checks would be performed on the basis of appear-
ance? Especially organisations of immigrants protested against
the racist basis, amongst others they organised a demonstra-
tion, in which 20,000 people took part, most of them immi-
grants. Pressured by the protests the under-secretary of the
ministry of justice suggested to exercise the control through
the Local Basic Administration (GBA). This plan met resistance
from the ministry of internal affairs. The function of control
would do the GBA no good. Finally the Bill was terminated, not
only because of the resistance against it, but also because of
Schengen. After the agreement of Schengen the Bill would have
to be changed again.
The principal of 'linking' status of residence to the use of
welfare and other facilities has found firm ground, in the
mean time. With a few changes the Bills for Social Provision
of Work (WSW) and the WW, now contain a clause that immigrants
without a valid residence permit are excluded. In the time of
the changes of these Bills there was a lot of criticism from
the Dutch center Foreigners (NCB). Just like with the 'Pass
Laws', these controls would be discriminating. Civil servants
would have to judge who to check on appearance. Secondly it
only concerned a small group of illegal foreigners. Finally
the NCB thought that civil servants should not be active in
tracing illegals, this being an improper task to their jobs.
During the parliamentary discussions the social-democrat PvdA
introduced a motion against the Bill:"specific regulation for
foreigners are not necessary taking in to account the conditi-
ons which unemployed workers have to meet. The proposal is
discriminating to specific groups."
Since 1991 every foreigner is systematically checked on status
of residence when applying for social security. By means of
standardised forms foreigners are also checked at the foreig-
ners police. By the end of 1992 a request for a social-fiscal
number was also checked. All requests are first sent to the
foreigners police, who verify the residence permit.
Exceptions
The exceptions to the principal of exclusion in the proposal
of the Linking Act are restricted to acute medical care, legal
aid and education for children under the age of 16. Pressured
by actions and statements, under-secretary Schmitz stated in
an interview with Binnenlands Bestuur (23/2/96) that schools
won't have to perform the task of control. "Schools will not
be obliged to send 17 year and older illegal children from
school, the Linking act is not meant as a witch-hunt for
illegals." In the mean time schools have to fulfil so many
requirements of registration that children without a residence
permit are likely to drop out.
The exception of legal aid is partly fake. According to Arno
van Deuzen of the legal aid group of the labor union FNV, one
is not entitled to free legal aid if you are not registered in
the GBA. With the cleaning of these files, legal aid for
illegals will disappear.
About medical care there is still discussion within the cabi-
net. When is something acute? A fund of 11 million guilders is
supposed to take care of this, but only in Amsterdam expenses
for non-insured run up to 14 million a year. With the Linking
Act this will only increase, because those illegals which
still pay duties and thus have health-insurance, will be
excluded from that. The most acute problems will be paid for
but what about necessary help like g.p.'s and maternity care?
