“My male family threatened me, I would almost be dead,” says Jan from Jordan. He is gay and practising it is banned in his home country. He sought contact with a small organisation ‘Rainbow railroad’ in Canada that helped LGBT’s. “They advised me to go to the Netherlands, a good country for homosexuals,” he said. He left immediately by plane and ended up in a detention centre at schiphol. There he had to tell his story and so he was placed in an asylum seekers’ centre in Ridderkerk. “But there I ended up with people I had just fled from. so I asked for a safer place and then they sent me to Rotterdam.”
The first time, he hated Rotterdam. “I saw a lot of Arabs and I heard there were gangsters. But I found out that my opinion was wrong; now I love Rotterdam. There are many diverse communities, you can do all kinds of things and the university is very nice. I’ve also been to Utrecht and Groningen but Rotterdam is the most modern. Also, it’s very safe here.”
Hoping for a residence permit
The municipality now temporarily accommodates asylum seekers like Jan in refugee boats. Jan lives on one near Coolhaven. “I was very happy with that. I do feel at home here. Maybe also because I also do voluntary work here.” Yet he still does not know if he will be allowed to stay. He has been waiting for a ruling for more than a year. Ideally, he would like to learn Dutch already, but because he does not yet have a residence permit, he can not have classes. Fortunately, volunteers are already giving them some lessons on the boat. “I hope I can stay here. I love the country, I respect it. I want to learn Dutch and study: information security.”
Feeling at home
In the meantime, he lives on 12 euros pocket money a week and tries to find his way in the city. To feel at home, he cooks Middle Eastern food. “I am with Manno foundation; it helps us with ingredients, a place to cook and activities,” he says. This is also exactly what Jan would advise other newcomers to feel at home in the city. “Go out. Do volunteer work. In this city, if you have a big network, you get a lot of opportunities.”