Traces of the past

Under asylum law, it is principally for the asylum-seeker to plausibly demonstrate that he
or she requires the protection of the Dutch government. The most significant sources of
information for this are the interviews that the personnel of the IND (Immigration and
Naturalisation Service) conduct with the asylum-seeker and general information about
the country of origin. Alongside these two sources, in some cases medical examination is
used to either substantiate or refute assertions of the asylum-seeker. This type of medical
examination is the subject of this advice.
For many years, asylum law adhered to the premise that medical aspects should generally
not play a role in the evaluation of asylum requests. Government members responsible
for this area have continuously taken the position that, medically speaking, there can be
no certain conclusions drawn concerning the cause of scars, physical and psychological
trauma (at least in most cases).