Koksijde (The Brussels Morning Newspaper): The asylum center in Kokside will close due to permit issues affecting about 300 residents. Local authorities frustrated by federal inaction regarding asylum seekers at the air base, seek resolution.
Nicole de Moor said they would close the asylum center in Kokside by the end of June because they had a lot of permit problems. The center where about 300 people lived had issues with legal rules and permits so they couldn’t keep it open. They decided to close the center at the end of June so that kids could finish their school year at the local schools in Kokside without any problems. They planned to help the 300 people find new places to stay and services. The authorities would work on this making sure families especially those with kids had good and stable homes during the move. The choice to close the center showed that it’s hard to handle where asylum seekers stay.
How are local authorities addressing the ongoing asylum seeker situation at Kokside air base?
Even after more than a month asylum seekers are still staying at the Koksijde air base making the local authorities upset. Mayor Marc Vanden Bussche is not happy because the federal authorities are not listening or replying to his messages or letters about the situation. This lack of response is making it even harder to deal with the problem. Mayor Marc Vanden Bussche is upset because he thinks the federal government is not following the rules and acting like they can do whatever they want. He said he will use all legal ways to fix the issue and make sure the government follows the right procedures and listens to local worries.
De Moor who is in charge of asylum policy didn’t say anything about what’s happening at the Koksijde air base. He told everyone to ask Fedasil the agency that handles asylum centers. Fedasil’s spokesperson, Arno Morsa said they just follow the decisions made by De Moor. Morsa mentioned that they are still working on closing the center but didn’t say when it will be done. Morsa said there are delays but Fedasil won’t give more information right now. This has made the locals even more frustrated because they still have many questions that haven’t been answered.
