Dutch interview migrants for resettlement

A Dutch mission has concluded a number of interviews with a selected number of third country nationals granted refugee status in Malta with the aim of resettling them in The Netherlands, the government said.

The mission consisted of officials from the Dutch Ministry for Justice and the Immigration Services of Holland, in collaboration with United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the Organisation for Migration.

The Emigrants Commission is working to encourage similar initiatives.

The Netherlands was the first European Union member state to accept Malta's proposal for assistance in view of the problem it faces in coping with the massive influx of illegal immigrants from North Africa.

This is the first time a member state is accepting refugees from another EU country as, previously, all accepted refugees came from Third World countries.

The resettlement of a number of refugees is a one-time event and Holland is encouraging other member states to play their part in intra-European burden sharing.