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| Europe |
| Dutch MPs approve hi-tech test for would-be migrants |
| 2006-01-23 |
| Migrants who want to come to the Netherlands will from March be obliged to take an inburgering (acclimatization) test in the country they are applying from. A majority of the Tweede Kamer supported the plan of immigration minister Rita Verdonk when it was presented on Thursday, provided that candidates are not punished for any teething troubles with its implementation. By setting out clear guidelines for would be migrants (joining families or coming for marriage, for instance), it is hoped the compulsory test will force migrants to be better prepared for life in Dutch society before they arrive. Candidates must take the exam – in Dutch - at an embassy or consulate. It will test their knowledge of the language and culture and be taken over the phone, verbally, using a PC with speech recognition software. There have been some doubts expressed as to the quality and reliability of the new technology (the ‘phonepass system’), but on advice from the government research institute TNO, Verdonk believes the trial can go ahead. To prevent unmerited failure, the results of the first 500 candidates will be carefully checked by four examiners. Candidates experiencing technical trouble can re-do the test for free, and an independent commission will follow the whole process and examine the results. |
| Posted by:lotp |
| #5 So, their artists get killed in the street, their politicians live under armed guard, and they still think immigration is a good idea? |
| Posted by: Spavigum Ulomosh9738 2006-01-23 22:55 |
| #4 TW that's details. The important thing is demanding such a test. |
| Posted by: gromgoru 2006-01-23 21:29 |
| #3 Candidates must take the exam – in Dutch - at an embassy or consulate. It will test their knowledge of the language and culture and be taken over the phone, verbally, using a PC with speech recognition software. I'm confused: do the candidates have to physically go to a Dutch consulate/embassy, or can they just call it in? How wil the computer know that the person talking to it is the same person who subsequently moves into that lovely flat overlooking the Princegracht in Amsterdam? |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2006-01-23 20:38 |
| #2 The doors are going shut all over Europe; we shall not see them open again in our lifetime. |
| Posted by: Edward Gray 2006-01-23 19:31 |
| #1 "Uh, Clem." |
| Posted by: Glaimble Sning9065 2006-01-23 19:27 |