Belgium has decided to cease offering shelter to single male asylum seekers.

 

The government of Belgium has faced criticism for its insufficient provision of shelter to thousands of individuals in search of asylum.

The Belgian government has implemented a prohibition on offering accommodation to single male asylum seekers. The rationale behind this decision is that the limited reception capacity should be prioritized for families, women, and children.

Belgium has frequently faced censure due to its inability to adequately provide shelter for the numerous individuals seeking refuge from persecution in their countries of origin. The presence of extended lines of tents along streets near the primary processing center in Brussels has tarnished Belgium's image.

On Wednesday, Belgium's State Secretary for Asylum, Nicole de Moor, announced a controversial decision amidst anticipated mounting pressure on asylum housing in the upcoming months. De Moor expressed her determination to prevent children from ending up homeless during the winter, leading to a policy where single men seeking asylum will no longer be provided shelter. Instead, they will be left to fend for themselves.

This decision has been met with severe criticism from human rights organizations. Philippe Hensmans, the director of Amnesty International Belgium, remarked, "We thought we’d seen it all, but no. The Belgian government isn’t just sitting on human rights. It’s burying them by ‘suspending’ the reception of single male asylum seekers."

De Moor stated that the past two years had witnessed an influx of asylum seekers in the country with a population of 11.5 million, filling shelter centers nearly to their capacity of 33,500.

According to Fedasil, the federal agency responsible for receiving asylum seekers, Belgium received nearly 37,000 applications for protection last year.

In addition to aiding asylum seekers, Belgium is also offering assistance to approximately 62,000 Ukrainian refugees.

In the previous year alone, labor courts convicted Fedasil over 5,000 times for failing to provide adequate shelter.

Nevertheless, de Moor insisted that "our country has already done more than its share for a long time" and urged other European Union nations to intensify their efforts.

In December, the highest human rights body in Europe called upon Belgian authorities to improve their support for asylum seekers following a distressing incident where hundreds of individuals were forced to sleep on the streets of Brussels in freezing temperatures.

The Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe expressed concern that the shortage of available spaces in reception facilities was infringing upon the rights of asylum seekers to access health services and other fundamental necessities.