Migrants stage protest in Brussels over residence permits

By Dursun Ayedemir

BRUSSELS (AA) - Hundreds of migrants living in Belgium without official documents and wanting to be legally included in the system demonstrated in front of the European Parliament on Thursday.

The group called for the cases of migrants who could not get a response to their residence applications to be discussed.

In their speeches, the migrants demanded that their legal rights be granted as soon as possible and that workplace discrimination should be prevented.

The demonstrators chanted slogans including "Solidarity with the paperless," "We are not dangerous" and "We are not foreigners."

Out of a total population of nearly 12 million, some 112,000 people are living in Belgium without a residence or work permit, according to estimates by researchers at Vrije Universiteit Brussel.

Among the asylum seekers, there are those who have applied for a residence permit but have not received a response for 14 years.