UNHCR Releases Disturbing Report on Asylum Seekers

According to a recent report by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the number of persons seeking asylum in the industrialized countries has fallen by 50% since 2000, reaching their lowest level in nearly two decades.

In most individual countries, the 2005 total was the lowest in many years. The number of persons who sought asylum in Germany was the lowest since 1983; the number in Switzerland was the lowest since 1986; and the number in the UK was the lowest since 1993. The most significant reductions in asylum seekers, however, took place outside of Europe: Canada and the United States received 54% fewer asylum requests in 2005 than in 2001, while Australia and New Zealand received 75% fewer requests.

Expressed in terms of absolute numbers of asylum seekers, France was the top receiving country in 2005, followed by the United States, the UK, and Germany. By contrast, if the number of asylum seekers is expressed as a proportion of a country’s total population, Cyprus, Austria, Sweden, Norway and Switzerland are the top receiving countries; the UK, Italy, France, and Germany are in the middle; and Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United States are at the bottom.

The largest group of asylum seekers in 2005 came from Serbia and Montenegro, including Kosovo. The second largest group came from the Russian Federation, including Chechnya. China was third, Iraq was fourth, and Turkey was fifth.

The UNHCR identifies two basic reasons for the precipitous decline in asylum seekers since 2000. First, living standards have improved in some countries of origin, such as the Balkans, Afghanistan, and parts of Africa. And second, many industrialized countries have amended their asylum policies to make it more difficult for persons to qualify.