Dutch government backtracks on migrant family reunions

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The Dutch government has backtracked on restrictions it placed on family members joining asylum-seekers who are granted residency in the Netherlands. The move comes after courts ruled that the move was unlawful. The State Secretary for Justice and Security said in a letter to parliament Wednesday that he expects other courts to follow suit “as a result of which the useful effect of the measure is temporarily absent.” The family reunion restrictions are being suspended pending a definitive ruling by a Dutch administrative court. The justice ministry introduced the restrictions last year as part of a raft of measures aimed at reining in the high numbers of migrants arriving in the Netherlands that led to overcrowding at asylum-seeker centers.