Netherlands grants amnesty to 25,000 asylum seekers
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AMSTERDAM — About 25,000 immigrants whose applications for asylum were rejected will be allowed to stay, the newly installed Dutch government said Saturday, reversing its predecessor’s hard-line policy.
“The foreigners who will be granted a permit on the basis of this ruling must find a place in Dutch society,” the Cabinet said. “That means not only education and work, but also integration and housing.”
The amnesty is for applicants who arrived before April 1, 2001, and were found ineligible but stayed on.
“This is the end of a hopeless situation for many people,” said Edwin Huizing, director of the main immigrant aid group.
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