Isn't it obvious?

About two weeks ago, it was finally 'discovered' or at least revealed, that the Dutch-required integration exam that residents of most others countries must take before moving to the Netherlands for family reunification, is "discriminatory". These exams have been in place since 2006, and non-western immigrants must take them in their home country in order to be allowed to move here. It obviously was very discriminatory from the very beginning: how can you allow westerners in without a culture and language test...but non-westerners aren't? Sure, Holland may have issues with Turkish and specifically Moroccan immigrants...but is this really the way to go about solving the problem?

Of course the applications have dropped in the last year, as they'd hoped. It costs 350 euros to take the test, plus your own time and money to learn some basic level of Dutch (where are you going to learn that in the mountains in Morocco?) and Dutch culture. This is in addition to the 820 euros you have to pay for the first year alone to get a residence permit in Holland. Where would people from these not-as-well-off countries get that kind of money? And the resources for learning Dutch? I don't think so...It is obvious they are trying to keep these specific groups out of the country.

I know that there are problems with certain groups of immigrants from certain individual countries, and there are some Dutch politicians and citizens that have major problems with this and letting go of a real "dutch" culture...whatever that is. I think the true character traits are coming to the surface now: xenophobia, intolerance, impatience, and stubbornness. The famously held idea of Dutch being "tolerant" does not apply any more in this sense.

I don't see the Netherlands changing their integration tests based on this report by this Human Watch Organization. they're too afraid...and too stuck in their ways. It takes a long time for the fear to go away.