A human rights activist and former immigration detainee has warned that Europe is trying to copy Australia’s harsh asylum system. He says asylum seekers held in Australia's offshore processing centers suffer psychological abuse, trauma and racism.
The number of applications for asylum in Europe has almost halved since COVID-19 containment measures came into effect. Syrians and Afghans continue to make up the biggest groups seeking protection.
Unaccompanied minors made up 7% of all asylum applications in 2019, according to the EU's statistics office, Eurostat. The number, however, is about 20% down from applications filed the previous year.
Divided Cyprus, split by a demarcation line not recognized as a border, has become a popular destination for migrants in recent years. Now, the government has introduced a series of measures to curtail the number of arrivals. Separately, it closed four of nine border crossing points with the northern part of the island over coronavirus fears last week.
Despite the falling numbers, the country still logs the largest share of all EU asylum claims. Around a quarter of asylum requests in the bloc this year were filed in Germany.
Eurostat said the EU has experienced a 12% increase in first asylum requests in the third quarter of 2019 - compared to numbers from the previous quarter. For the first time, asylum seekers from Venezuela are in the top three of nationalities submitting asylum requests.
Thousands of asylum-seekers in Germany have returned multiple times after deportation, according to a report in German media. Those with entry bans often serve a few months in jail or are not arrested at all.
Toll-free phone numbers and slashed waiting times for an appointment with asylum application services… Those are just some of the recommendations that Paris’s administrative court on Tuesday handed the French government in a bid to improve the Paris region’s failing migrant services.
Samir arrived in Germany five years ago as an unaccompanied minor at the age of 15. Since then he has learned German, completed school and started an apprenticeship; but his future in Germany is still unclear. The German TV channel ZDF has been following him for five years on his journey to adulthood.
The number of people applying for asylum in Germany has slowed down, with figures from this year expected to be lower than in 2018, according to a report. The vast majority of applications, however, are rejected.
The number of new stay permits issued to migrants and refugees in Italy decreased in 2018, according to the Italian statistics bureau ISTAT. The number of stay permits issued to asylum seekers went down over 40%.
The European Commission has asked Italy to guarantee an effective and human repatriation program. Last week, Italy had announced a new decree to accelerate the expulsion of migrants from 'safe countries' who have no right to stay.