Netherlands: military to control entry
01 November 1992
In September the major refugee organisation in Holland, 'Vluchtelingenwerk', published a report "Rejected on Schiphol Airport" on the role of the Military Police at Schiphol Airport dealing with the asylum procedures. The Military Police (KMAR) is responsible for the controls of passports and visas at the borders of Holland. Many asylum-seekers come to Holland by plane through Schiphol airport, and the KMAR who have been given the job of checking their documents and requests for asylum.
The report describes the period from May 1991 to July 1992. During that time 73 asylum-seekers were refused entry to the country by the KMAR. As a result of this policy the number of asylum-seekers at Schiphol in 1991 was reduced to half the 1990 figures. The main reason was that "gate checks" by the KMAR had been intensified. These controls take place at "high risk" flight gates where planes arrive carrying people from certain countries which the KMAR suspect of using false documents.
The Vluchtelingenwerk report concluded that: 1) The situation for asylum-seekers at Schiphol airport has become worse since the KMAR has started to control the documents through "gate checks". They do not take proper care in cases of requests for asylum and asylum-seekers are sent back to countries where they fear persecution; 2) this procedure conducted by the KMAR is illegal under Dutch and international law; 3) The documented cases show that the procedure operated by the KMAR is not an incidental but is structural. As a result of the report the Minister of Justice Mr Kosto has decided to make an internal inquiry into the KMAR and investigate the incidents.
These "gate checks" are part of the measures taken by the Dutch government to reduce the number of asylum-seekers. Other measures are being prepared in accordance with the Schengen Agreement and EC conventions - sanctions will be taken against airlines who transport people with false or no documents; there will be one common policy for visas in the Schengen countries (which have a list of 115 countries where people will need a visa to enter); and proposals on the EC-level defining country of first place of arrival.