Drop in SL asylum seekers

29 March 2011 03:27 am - 6 - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

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The number of asylum-seekers from countries including Sri Lanka seeking to live in the industrialized world continues to fall, a latest report from the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said in a statement.

Accordingly, …it is now almost half the level it was a decade ago, the United Nations refugee agency reported today as it released its annual snapshot of asylum trends.

The report from the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) finds that 358,800 applications for asylum were lodged last year in 44 developed countries – a drop of 5 per cent on the 2009 figures and about 42 per cent below the levels of 2001, when nearly 620,000 applications were made.

Unveiling the report, High Commissioner António Guterres said the global dynamics of asylum had changed in recent years.

Serbia – including Kosovo – provided the biggest number of asylum-seekers in 2010, with 28,900 claims lodged, compared to only 18,800 the previous year.

UNHCR said the sharp rise was probably due to the European Union’s December 2009 decision to grant visa-free entry to holders of Serbian passports.

The other leading countries of origin of asylum-seekers were, in order: Afghanistan, China, Iraq, Russia, Somalia, Iran, Pakistan, Nigeria and Sri Lanka.

Within the developed world, the United States was the biggest recipient of asylum claims, with 55,500 lodged last year, due in part to an increase in applications from Chinese and Mexicans. France was second, with 47,800 claims, drawn largely from Serbian, Russian and Congolese asylum-seekers. Germany, Sweden and Canada rounded out the top five recipient nations.

Comments - 6

Singha Tuesday, 29 March 2011 04:34 AM

This proves that they are not real refugees they go for economic reasons and lie about everything. Now that the world economy is more in favour of developing countries they are staying back

Sammy Tuesday, 29 March 2011 04:32 AM

Maybe there is a realization that the industrialized nations themselves are having economic problems.

Konde bendapu china Tuesday, 29 March 2011 05:05 AM

Totally economic Reasons except handful of cases seek asylum in the west,now as there is no jobs available numbers is droping

Royalist Tuesday, 29 March 2011 05:45 AM

Now leave your economic asylums and return to our miraculous lunatic asylum....

lankaman Tuesday, 29 March 2011 08:06 AM

very soon we will have asylum seekers coming here from other countries. Already indians/pakistanis are upto it

zorro Tuesday, 29 March 2011 08:58 AM

Come back to the wonder of Asia, we welcome the Europeans and Americans too to seek asylum in Sri Lanka.

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Drop in SL asylum seekers

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