Safe City Needs Strong Education, Policing

There are more people in Dutch prisons with a migration background than without. Do these people commit more crime?

'Crime is more common among underprivileged population groups', says law professor and criminologist Maartje van der Woude. 'Within those groups, people with a migration background are an increasingly large group. This is not because they are less talented but because they are kept small by racism and exclusion. This includes labour market discrimination, which already begins when young people look for an internship. Ethnic profiling by the police also ensures that people with a migration background end up behind bars more often. They are more likely to be suspected of crime whereas white people are more likely to get away with things.'

To what extent is it true, as often claimed, that migrants are responsible for increased crime?

'This conviction, which is fuelled by politics and the media, is so strong you can't avoid it', says Van de Woude. 'It's complicated but it is incorrect. People do experience more anti-social behaviour and perhaps more incidents, around asylum seekers' centres, but asylum seekers are less likely to be suspected of crime than similar groups of Dutch citizens.'

'Incidents always happen when there are large groups of people', says Henri Lenferink, former mayor of Leiden. ' Shoplifting rates are higher near schools, for example. Asylum centre managers, like school governors, need to have a good relationship with the police. And there can be overcrowding: 2,500 to 3,000 asylum seekers are far too many for a small place like Ter Apel. And the people there are bored and don't have any prospects. They have to wait extremely long and see decision deadlines on residence permits being missed. It's a miserable situation.'

So the streets are safe around asylum seekers' centres are safe?

The Research and Data Centre's Incidenten Monitor shows that incidents around asylum seekers' centres are mostly property offences, such as theft', says Van der Woude. 'Violence is less of an issue and the largest group of nuisance perpetrators are the refugees who know they will be deported anyway, people who come from so-called "safe-countries". Also, undocumented migrants - people without valid residence permits such as failed asylum seekers -sometimes steal as a matter of necessity, to survive.

'It is important to address the concerns of people living near a asylum seekers' centres. But it is just as important to understand why these incidents occur. Is it due to the stress caused by the uncertainty of an increasingly lengthy asylum procedure? Or to the tensions caused by cultural or religious differences? Let's try to understand and resolve this dynamic instead of trying to keep asylum seekers out.'

There has been a lot of outrage about people with a Moroccan background and crime

'There were problems with Moroccan youths in the Netherlands between around 2005 and 2015', says Lenferink. 'Among Moroccan girls, crime was actually lower than average among young people. In Morocco, boys are more likely to be sent outside, which is understandable when many people are living in a small house. On the streets, the boys egg each other on.'

How can you resolve this type of social problem?

'There will always be excesses of some kind', says Lenferink. 'Ridouan Taghi is an example of the Moroccan mafia. In Leiden, the problems with Moroccan youths were relatively minor. I think one of the reasons for this was that extra money was allocated for a very long time to educational disadvantage policies in Leiden. There were also more job opportunities in Leiden. And the Leiden police were always quite strict. They detained young people and put them on the right track. That led to less repeat crime. In addition, and this is very important: how welcome do you feel? In Leiden, the locals have been used to people from outside for a thousand years; it was never a problem. As the mayor, I was in close contact with Moroccan organisations, such as the Hoop en ontwikkeling foundation. It is in part due to this focuse that Moroccans think Leiden is a nice place to live.'

How important are migrant organisations in preventing crime and promoting successful coexistence in a city?

'At the time when everyone was afraid of Muslims radicalising, the Municipality of Leiden and a mosque held a big meeting for Moroccan mothers and fathers', says Lenferink. 'The theme was: "What can we do to prevent our boys from going down the wrong path?" During the discussions, the parents started calling each other out: "Your son is still out at eleven at night. That's asking for trouble".'

'There is always friction when you bring different cultural groups together'

'There is always friction when you bring different cultural groups together', says Van der Woude 'It should not be left to migrant organisations to find solutions. I volunteered at the Stichting Narcis Moroccan women's association in Leiden. They have a connecting role because they hold events where non-Moroccan women are also welcome, such as an Iftar meal. Such initiatives would be stronger if the municipality immediately told to new residents about the various initiatives and what they do. At present, it is left to chance and the grapevine.'

What can be done about the negative attitude towards asylum seekers?

'Local councillors should not suddenly overwhelm residents with 500 asylum seekers', says Van der Woude. 'They need to engage in a dialogue while also showing how much a village can benefit from these people. Asylum seekers are not allowed to work, although that now looks set to change. But they can add a lot by doing voluntary work.'

'In municipalities that are shrinking, asylum seekers can help ensure that local schools stay open', says Lenferink. 'In the Achterhoek region, we are preparing a project linking asylum seekers to secondary vocational education courses. We want to ask them what they want to do if you are allowed to stay. Then they will be able to start the right programme as soon as they are granted leave to stay and able to help alleviate shortages in various sectors. Accept that there are cultural differences from one local authority area to the next. The history of cities like Arnhem, Zutphen or Wageningen makes it easier for them to absorb more newcomers than some villages. City air is liberating.'

'The other day, I spoke with my plumber about why he voted for the PVV'

'Anyone who can, should take responsibility', says Van der Woude. 'Don't be drawn in by such sentiments as being afraid of what you don't know. Make the move, and find out more about that neighbour whose origins happen to differ from your own. The other day, I spoke with my plumber about why he voted for the PVV. It was a good conversation and we both learned from it. Seek connection.'

Seeking connection is something we seem to be getting less good at

That is why education is so important', says Van der Woude. 'In my faculty, we train people in law. They do not always realise that the law is not objective. There are always people behind it who implement it. Through the university's Honours Academy, we offer the "Empathy and the Other" course, in which students learn to deal with gender-fluid people or refugees, for example. Young people growing up at their computer screens sometimes do not have much contact and experience social distance. This makes them more susceptible to inhumane and exclusionary behaviour. We want to eliminate the us-and-them perspective and offer tools for empathy in conversations. A prerequisite for greater connection.'

'I see dedicated teachers giving great lessons'

'Good education is really the most important thing for a safe society with as little crime and as few mutual tensions as possible', says Lenferink. 'I am very impressed with the Het Mozaïek primary school in Malburgen, an impoverished district in Arnhem. It is a black school in a neighbourhood with a lot of social housing and people from migrant backgrounds. It is one of the best schools in Arnhem, with their pupils attaining high final scores. Pupils won a national debating tournament andthe school received an official "excellent" rating. I see dedicated teachers there giving great lessons at a high pace and the students hanging on their every word! Phones are banned; they use their own teaching methods. They find existing methods infantile, with too many pictures. Instead, they work with complicated texts.'

Is this how you create adults who are able to live side by side?

'In education, there should be an extensive and repeated focus on living side by side', says Van der Woude. 'This will prevent prejudice among people and implementing bodies such as the Tax and Customs Administration and DUO. This focus in education is by no means a quick fix. Many migration policies and measures are incident-driven. At the Advisory Council on Migration, we give the government guidance that makes sense for the long term.'

Text: Rianne Lindhout

Photo: Rotterdam make it happen/Erik Frecken