The Netherlands long had a tradition of welcoming refugees, but in recent years there has been a surge of support for political parties opposed to immigration amid concern that the number of foreigners living in the country is undermining Dutch culture. The anti-Islamic Party of Freedom scored 15.5% in last year's general election, making it the third-largest group in Parliament, and the center-right government is dependent on its support. Asylum policies have been tightened.
“They don't see us like human, animals have more rights than asylum seekers,” said Blessing, 24, one of the contestants on last week's show. Full names of the participants were not released for privacy reasons. “They just see us a bunch of thieves and liars, but they need to start seeing us as individuals. Look at the people on the program; we have so much to contribute,” she insisted. “We are not just eating, sleeping and waiting for the government to do things for us, we are hard-working people, we've proven to them that we are integrated into the system and we are ready to contribute and to give back.” Blessing fled Cameroon when she was 15 and is now about to complete her Aviation Engineering degree at the Hogeschool Amsterdam University, but has had her residency revoked and risks deportation. She defends the show's unconventional approach. “There have been so many serious shows about this subject, so many very sad interviews,” she told GlobalPost in a telephone interview. “It's a serious issue, but by treating it in a funny way we can do something different from what people are already used to and get more attention. We wanted to show that we are not pathetic people, we are just normal, that's why we took a fun approach.” Competing against rivals from Chechnya, Sri Lanka, Syria and Armenia, Blessing was the first contestant eliminated from the show due to her inability to carve cheese or answer questions like: how many bicycles were stolen in the Netherlands during 2010? (The answer: 524,000). As a consolation prize, she was given a bulletproof vest decorated in the style of traditional Delft blue tiles.