Refugee centre in the Netherlands set on fire with 15 inside
A fire at a refugee centre with 15 asylum seekers inside reopens the migration rift in the Netherlands.
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
Refugee centre in the Netherlands burns with 15 inside
A fire has destroyed an asylum seekers' reception centre in the Netherlands. There were 15 people inside when the blaze broke out, apparently deliberately. The incident, for which no one has yet been confirmed responsible, has abruptly peine Europe's rift over migration.
The rift no one puts out
Reactions were swift, and they paint an uncomfortable picture. One camp holds that violence solves nothing and that migration policy is only contested at the ballot box: the answer is built through elections and laws, not with petrol. Opposite them, another camp shows open hostility towards the residents, ranging from incivil to outright satisfaction at the fire.
The anecdote that best sums up the mood is the comparison with churches. Some sneer that it must have been "a badly stubbed-out cigarette", the same recurring explanation offered for fires at places of worship. Others go further and propose a thought experiment: if Parliament burned down with the politicians inside, would anyone mourn the building? The implied answer is that collective guilt justifies anything.
While some lament the material damage to the property, few ask about the condition of the 15 people who were inside. That asymmetry between property and lives says more about where the migration debate is heading than any arrival statistics. The investigation will have to determine who lit the fire; the uncomfortable question is who feeds the hatred that others then set alight.
A fire has destroyed an asylum seekers' reception centre in the Netherlands. There were 15 people inside when the blaze broke out, apparently deliberately. The incident, for which no one has yet been confirmed responsible, has abruptly peine Europe's rift over migration.
The rift no one puts out
Reactions were swift, and they paint an uncomfortable picture. One camp holds that violence solves nothing and that migration policy is only contested at the ballot box: the answer is built through elections and laws, not with petrol. Opposite them, another camp shows open hostility towards the residents, ranging from incivil to outright satisfaction at the fire.
The anecdote that best sums up the mood is the comparison with churches. Some sneer that it must have been "a badly stubbed-out cigarette", the same recurring explanation offered for fires at places of worship. Others go further and propose a thought experiment: if Parliament burned down with the politicians inside, would anyone mourn the building? The implied answer is that collective guilt justifies anything.
While some lament the material damage to the property, few ask about the condition of the 15 people who were inside. That asymmetry between property and lives says more about where the migration debate is heading than any arrival statistics. The investigation will have to determine who lit the fire; the uncomfortable question is who feeds the hatred that others then set alight.
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (10 replies).
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