Arnon Grunberg
Words Without Borders

It's an Illusion That You Can Close the Border

It doesn't happen that often, but once again, the Netherlands has turned out to be world news.
The politician, activist and author Ayaan Hirshi Ali (born in Somalia) was stripped of her citizenship because she had lied to the authorities while seeking asylum.
Under heavy pressure, Emigration Minister Rita Verdonk decided that Ms. Hirshi Ali would remain Dutch, at least for the time being.
For those who haven’t followed the story, it’s all neatly summarized by Ian Buruma in the New York Times.
Most people in New York know someone who got married in order to obtain a green card. I once ran into a woman who got married to an Italian man for seven thousand US dollars. Thanks to this woman, he managed to stay in the US legally.
They rehearsed for two weeks in order to answer all of the possible questions by the immigration authorities correctly.
Marrying for seven thousand US dollars might not be the most ethical thing to do. But if both parties profited from this transaction, which I think they did, there is no need to rush to judgment.
In the Netherlands, marrying is not enough to obtain papers. I know quite a few people over there who got married to women from outside the European Union. After that, they had to leave the Netherlands in order to be with their wife and sometimes even their children, because they were not able to prove that they could pay the bills.
At least in this aspect, the US law seems to be slightly more humane than the Dutch law.
As long as there are strong economical and other reasons to immigrate, it’s an illusion that you can close the border. People will slip through just as, for example, cocaine does.
There’s a tendency in the Netherlands to react more and more hysterically to all kinds of things, whether is’s a game lost by the national soccer team, the murder of a politician, or an unfortunate decision by a Minister.
Hysterical people are entertaining for a while, but the dynamics of hysteria very soon becomes repetitive.
Television thrives on emotions, genuine or not, I know. There is something to be said for not showing emotions in public. Or even not having emotions one day a week.


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