Hotels were booked for parliamentary staff, the most pointless speeches ever written. Member of Parliament Theo Francken (N-VA) even brought books to read from. It did not promise to be a pretty spectacle last night in the federal parliament. Opposition parties N-VA and Vlaams Belang made every effort to delay the return law of State Secretary for Asylum and Migration Nicole de Moor (CD&V). Vlaams Belang requested speaking time for no fewer than 16 of their faction members, half an hour each. As if that hour-long speech was not enough to make their point, the far-right party also submitted a hundred amendments to the law. Five minutes of speaking time was added for each amendment.
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That is not a normal way of working. ‘Filibustering’, or filling up a parliamentary session, is a proven tactic to prevent the political opponent from achieving victory. In the past it was successfully applied by Jean-Marie Dedecker, among others. So close to the elections, it is sometimes used to make a point about a certain issue. So double the price.
“We are going to enter into a parliamentary fight,” was how Francken put it. Vlaams Belang faction leader Barbara Pas had announced an “amendment and procedural battle”. “With this way of working, the majority knows what they are getting into, but not where they will end up.” There were rumors that both parties wanted to extend the hearing until Friday afternoon if necessary.
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Persistent return policy
Of course, it should not be surprising that Francken and Vlaams Belang set their foot on a migration file. State Secretary De Moor has been trying to get her return law through parliament for months. This provides for a “sustained return policy” to guide undocumented people to their country of origin. Every year, between 30,000 and 50,000 people are ordered to leave Belgian territory. They are first encouraged to return voluntarily. If they do not, forced return may follow.
READ ALSO. “This way we can detain hundreds of illegal immigrants at once”: N-VA wants to build a prison in Kosovo to combat overcrowding here
The procedures must be adjusted accordingly. Deals are needed with countries of origin such as Morocco and Tunisia. But also instruments to intensively monitor people without papers. The spearhead of the new Vivaldi law is the introduction of an obligation to cooperate and expanding the group of return counselors.
(Read more below the photo)
Barbara Pas. — © BELGA
A step towards more returns. And yet right-wing parties consider the deal insufficient. After all, a number of measures have collapsed under pressure from the left-wing parties in the federal government. Families with children may not be detained in closed reception centres. This is anchored in the new law. Residential entrances to invade a sans-paper home did not make it into the text. “Without those measures, this law will not make any difference,” says Vlaams Belang faction leader Barbara Pas.
Battle of attrition
The opposition first tried to undermine the law by sending it to the Council of State again. But N-VA and Vlaams Belang needed the support of PVDA for this. This did not happen, which meant that the majority was able to unexpectedly put the return law on the agenda at the plenary meeting. “The legislation can still be delayed there, but not collapsed,” the N-VA admits. Especially since parliament will still meet until May 8.
(Read more under the positions)
PVDA - We stop the military interventions from which millions of people still flee today, such as the wars in Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya or support for the Israeli war in Gaza. Our foreign policy is focused on diplomacy and peace negotiations
- We take strict action against all forms of social dumping where foreign workers are used to work under Belgian wage and employment conditions
- We are introducing a truly solidarity-based distribution plan for asylum seekers across all countries of the European Union, so that every Member State contributes
- We will put an end to the permanent shortage of asylum reception facilities by providing sufficient reserve reception places
- We ensure that every asylum seeker has the right to a serious examination of their asylum application, with respect for the Geneva Convention
GREEN - Fast and transparent asylum procedures. After a maximum of 6 months, someone should know whether they can stay or should return
- An enforceable European dispersal mechanism for the reception of people on the move, through a reform of the Dublin Convention
- Removing unjust barriers to family reunification, so that fewer families are torn apart
- Better support people in illegal residence towards a sustainable perspective: right of residence or return
- No detention of children and vulnerable groups, such as pregnant women, people with disabilities and victims of human trafficking
VLAAMS BELANG - The reception of asylum seekers in your own region
- Restricting family reunification through, among other things, higher income requirements and an integration exam
- Reducing the influx of asylum seekers by, among other things, expanding the list of ‘safe countries’ and a maximum contribution from asylum seekers to the costs of reception
- Labor migration only for highly educated profiles, preferably from Western countries
- Organize a referendum on immigration
OPEN VLD - Less influx by better monitoring Europe’s external borders. There it is already checked whether applications are admissible at all
- Belgium concludes migration deals with countries of origin via the EU
- Trade agreements, development cooperation and the issuance of visas are linked to the willingness of countries of origin to take back their compatriots
- Conditions for family reunification severely tightened. Living and working in Belgium for two years and therefore contributing. Access to social security is built up gradually
- Shelter must always take place in humane conditions. “We do not accept that people have to sleep on the street while awaiting a decision in their asylum procedure.”
CD&V - We are working on the realization of the new European asylum and migration pact: stricter controls at the external borders, rapid border procedures and a mandatory distribution of asylum seekers between the Member States
- We are drastically shortening the procedures through the new migration code
- A stricter return policy with coercive measures such as house arrest, detention infrastructure and a legal framework for residential entry
- We link return policy to sanctions for countries of origin: restrictions in the areas of labor migration, development cooperation and visa granting
- We are stricter on family reunification: by focusing on the actual care relationship with a child, we put an end to the phenomenon of ‘bébé papier’
FORWARD - Countries that do not want to take back their nationals should not count on trade agreements or labor and study migration to our country, and cannot receive visa exemptions
- There must be a unified European asylum procedure with mandatory solidarity and balanced distribution between the Member States
- After a rejection (even in another EU country), a new asylum application can no longer be submitted
- There must be a persistent return policy. For those who do not wish to return voluntarily, residential entry and detention should be possible
- Family reunification must be viewed more critically because integration is progressing poorly. The income requirement for those who have family transferred must be increased
N-VA - The N-VA advocates the externalization of the asylum procedure. Shelter and protection are organized outside European borders, in your own region
- The absolute priority of the return policy is to return criminal illegal immigrants. We are also introducing a lifelong entry ban for serious criminals and terrorists
- Anyone who enters Europe illegally loses any chance of legal residence in the European Union. Those who do try will be rescued and sent back to a safe reception facility outside the EU
- We are further tightening the conditions for family reunification – also for refugees: we are raising the income limit and adjusting it depending on the number of people and imposing additional integration obligations for both the applicant and the sponsor.
- We implement fast and efficient fast track procedures for top profiles that we want to attract at all costs in ‘the war for talent’
The right-wing parties can therefore camp on the pulpit for hours, Nicole de Moor made it clear that the vote will still happen – and therefore also the law. Even if it is after a parliamentary war of attrition. “I will continue to persevere. The law must be voted on.”
READ ALSO. EXCLUSIVE: all party positions on all hot issues. They promise to realize this
The majority proposed a new change to the agenda on Thursday evening, postponing the vote to next week. The proposal was accepted by N-VA, on the condition that speaking time would be unlimited and that the majority would be present throughout the night. “Otherwise we will ask to postpone the debate until next week,” Sander Loones threatened. Vlaams Belang did not support the proposal and did not vote, in protest. The other opposition factions also did not vote.
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Nicole de Moor. — © BELGA
Ultimately, the new persistent return policy was debated on Thursday night from 11:15 PM until around 3:45 AM. There was no real filibustering – which often deviated from the actual subject – either. De Moor, who remained present all night, even thanked the parliamentarians involved for the “substantive discussion”.
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So we now have to wait for next week for the actual vote. In addition to the persistent return policy, the compensation of terror victims, the inclusion of animal welfare in the Constitution and the amended law on open government were also on the agenda of the House on Thursday. Those texts will also not be voted on until next week.
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