The Netherlands: Could the 'liberal' Dutch have learned from Taiwan's approach to coronavirus?

The whole world has been struggling to contain the coronavirus and “flatten the curve”, but Taiwan has had no curve. Out of a population of 24 million, only 440 people have tested positive for Covid-19, and there have been just seven deaths.Compare that with the Netherlands: while it is similar in size to Taiwan with a population of 17 million, well over 5,000 lives have been lost to the virus.

What has made the difference? Clearly, the Netherlandsis not an island that could cut itself off from the rest of world, lockdown completely and thus contain the disease. Taiwan is – but Taiwan didn’t do that either.

Public spaces in Taiwan, restaurants, shops and schools, have all remained open since the initial Covid-19 outbreak in Wuhan. Life in Taiwan hascontinued pretty much the same as before. What Taiwan did however, wasopt for a complex tradeoff involving viruscontainment strategies and information gathering, while balancing individual autonomy with trust and control.

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Could the 'liberal' Dutch have learned from Taiwan's approach to coronavirus? | | Opinion | The Guardian

Refugees: Canada offers EU example in integrating Syrian refugees by Sarantis Michalopoulos

While EU politicians are still bickering over their share of the burden of refugees in Europe, Canada is seeking ways to rapidly integrate 25,000 Syrians into its society.

Speaking to journalists in Brussels last week, David Manicom, Associate Assistant Deputy Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship of Canada, explained how his country managed to address the refugee crisis by building up permanent structures and institutions.

The government in Ottawa is committed to resettling 25,000 Syrian refugees by the end of February 2016. The number is small compared to the number of people arriving in Europe, but the total population of the North American country is only around 36 million.

Currently, Canada has accepted more than 13,000 Syrian refugees on its soil and the rest of the 12,000 are expected at the end of the month - while by the end of 2016 the country is planning to host between 35,000 and 40,000 refugees.

He continued, saying that all refugees have support services available to help them learn English and French, and prepare for employment.

“Behind refugee resettlement for Canada, a fundamental philosophy is the integration into employment and communities' Iit’s the best way to build communities.”

Asked by EurActiv to comment on the current refugee crisis deadlock in Europe, the Canadian official said that it would not be appropriate to have a strong opinion, but noted:

“There is one clear lesson: If you don’t provide safe and legal pathways people will pursue dangerous and illegal pathways.”

Read more: Canada offers EU example in integrating Syrian refugees | EurActiv