A Wall of Silence in Response to a Crisis
The Dutch government's commitment to protecting its most vulnerable residents is facing a severe test. David van Weel, the caretaker Minister for Asylum and Migration, has met an urgent warning about the safety of queer asylum seekers with what advocates are calling a deafening silence. A formal, urgent letter—a brandbrief—from LGBT Asylum Support detailing 931 severe incidents of violence and discrimination in 2023 was simply “taken note of” by the minister, a bureaucratic dismissal of a life-or-death crisis.
The reports, which mark yet another increase from previous years, paint a grim picture of life inside Dutch asylum reception centers (AZCs). For many queer individuals who fled persecution in their home countries, the promise of safety in the Netherlands has been replaced by a new reality of harassment, threats, and physical violence from other residents, often with inadequate intervention from the Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers (COA).
The Human Cost of Inaction
This is not an abstract policy debate. The stakes were made tragically clear in 2023 with the suicides of three queer asylum seekers. Among them was a minor transgender girl who had escaped Russia, only to find the despair in a Dutch reception center insurmountable. For LGBT Asylum Support, the minister's passive response in the face of these deaths is a profound betrayal.
Sandro Kortekaas, chairperson of the organization, did not mince words:
"It is unacceptable that the minister is ignoring these signals. In doing so, he is abandoning the most vulnerable group in our care."
The organization, which has been flagging systemic safety failures for the past decade, stated in its letter on February 9th that agreed-upon procedures with the COA are simply not being followed, leaving queer residents dangerously exposed.
The Fight Moves to Parliament
Refusing to accept the minister's indifference, LGBT Asylum Support has now escalated the issue. The organization has formally appealed to the House of Representatives (Tweede Kamer), urging MPs to compel Minister van Weel to take the 931 reports seriously and mandate immediate, concrete action. The core demand is that the COA must be held accountable for responding swiftly and effectively to every report of anti-LGBTQ+ aggression.
Furthermore, the group is preparing to bring its case before the National Ombudsman to investigate systemic government failure. The message is clear: if the Minister won't listen, then other institutions must be forced to intervene. The safety of those who came to the Netherlands seeking refuge depends on it.
