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Conflicts in Afghanistan and Somalia fuel increase in asylum seekers

News Stories, 24 March 2009

Ten countries (United States, Canada, France, Italy, United Kingdom, Sweden, Germany, Greece, Switzerland and Norway) received 73 percent of asylum applications in the industrialized world.

GENEVA, March 24 (UNHCR) – Provisional statistics compiled by the UN refugee agency show that the number of asylum seekers in industrialized countries increased last year for the second year running.

"The increase can partly be attributed to higher numbers of asylum applications by citizens of Afghanistan, Somalia and other countries experiencing turmoil or conflict," UNHCR spokesman Ron Redmond said in Geneva on Tuesday. "Although the number of Iraqi asylum seekers declined by 10 percent in 2008, Iraqis continued to be the largest nationality seeking asylum in the industrialized world," he added.

The provisional UNHCR figures indicate that some 383,000 new asylum applications were submitted last year in 51 industrialized countries, a 12 percent rise compared to 2007, when there were some 341,000 applications. This is the second consecutive annual increase in the number of asylum seekers since 2006, when the lowest number of asylum applications in 20 years was registered (307,000).

The top country of origin of asylum applicants in 2008 was Iraq (40,500, down 10 percent from 45,100 in 2007), followed by Somalia (21,800), the Russian Federation (20,500), Afghanistan (18,500) and China (17,400). Of the 10 main nationalities claiming asylum last year, some remained stable while others registered significant increases.

Countries of origin recording a significant rise in applications included Afghanistan (up 85 percent), Zimbabwe (up 82 percent), Somalia (up 77 percent), Nigeria (up 71 percent) and Sri Lanka (up 24 percent). All of these countries experienced unrest or conflicts in 2008.

"The United States continued to be the main country of destination for asylum seekers of all nationalities in 2008, with an estimated 49,000 new asylum claims, accounting for 13 percent of all applications in industrialized countries," Redmond said, while adding: "Compared to the size of its national population, however, the United States had only one asylum seeker per 1,000 inhabitants, while the average in the European Union countries was 2.4 asylum seekers per 1,000 inhabitants."

After the United States, the main countries of destination for asylum seekers in 2008 were Canada (36,900), France (35,200), Italy (31,200) and the United Kingdom (30,500).

Top 10 origin countries: Iraq, Somalia, Russian Federation, Afghanistan, China, Serbia, Nigeria, Pakistan, Eritrea, Mexico.

Along with the rise in the overall total of asylum seekers over the last two years, the number of countries receiving applications has also increased. In 2004, for example, Iraqis applied for asylum in only seven industrialized nations (excluding countries receiving less than 500 applications), while in 2008 they applied for asylum in 14 countries.

This suggests that people seeking international protection are searching for it in a larger number of countries, possibly as a result of the introduction of stricter asylum policies in traditional asylum states. This was observed in Sweden, where more restrictive asylum policies led to a 67 percent drop in the number of asylum applications by Iraqis between 2007 and 2008. During the same period, the number of Iraqi asylum seekers in neighbouring Norway nearly trebled, and quadrupled in Finland, according to the latest statistics.

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The makeshift camp at Patras

Thousands of irregular migrants, some of whom are asylum-seekers and refugees, have sought shelter in a squalid, makeshift camp close to the Greek port of Patras since it opened 13 years ago. The camp consisted of shelters constructed from cardboard and wood and housed hundreds of people when it was closed by the Greek government in July 2009. UNHCR had long maintained that it did not provide appropriate accommodation for asylum-seekers and refugees. The agency had been urging the government to find an alternative and put a stronger asylum system in place to provide appropriate asylum reception facilities for the stream of irregular migrants arriving in Greece each year.The government used bulldozers to clear the camp, which was destroyed by a fire shortly afterwards. All the camp residents had earlier been moved and there were no casualties. Photographer Zalmaï, a former refugee from Afghanistan, visited the camp earlier in the year.

The makeshift camp at Patras

From the corners of the globe, the displaced converge in northern France

Hundreds of migrants, asylum seekers and refugees have created a number of makeshift camps in northern France. Drawn from a diverse range of countries, the men are hoping that from France they will be able to enter the United Kingdom.

Locals call it, "The Jungle" - a squalid warren of shanties made out of cardboard, plywood and bits of plastic that has mushroomed among the sand dunes and brambles outside Calais. Hundreds of migrants and asylum seekers from such faraway places as Afghanistan, Somalia and Vietnam have traveled for months and over rough terrain to camp out and eventually cross the 34-kilometre stretch of sea that separates Calais from England's White Cliffs of Dover.

Some have family in the UK or have heard that it is easy to get a good job there. Others have been forced to flee their countries because of political, religious or ethnic persecution, and may be entitled to refugee status.

Since early June, the UN refugee agency and its local partner, France Terre d'Asile, have been present in Calais, informing and counselling hundreds of people about asylum systems and procedures in France and the UK.

From the corners of the globe, the displaced converge in northern France

South Africa: Searching for Coexistence

South Africa is one of the few countries in Africa where registered refugees and asylum-seekers can legally move about freely, access social services and compete with locals for jobs.

But while these right are enshrined in law, in practice they are sometimes ignored and refugees and asylum-seekers often find themselves turned away by employers or competing with the poorest locals for the worst jobs - especially in the last few years, as millions have fled political and economic woes in countries like Zimbabwe. The global economic downturn has not helped.

Over the last decade, when times turned tough, refugees in towns and cities sometimes became the target of the frustrations of locals. In May 2008, xenophobic violence erupted in Johannesburg and quickly spread to other parts of the country, killing more than 60 people and displacing about 100,000 others.

In Atteridgeville, on the edge of the capital city of Pretoria - and site of some of the worst violence - South African and Somali traders, assisted by UNHCR, negotiated a detailed agreement to settle the original trade dispute that led to the torching of Somali-run shops. The UN refugee agency also supports work by the Nelson Mandela Foundation to counter xenophobia.