Finland to expel 20,000 of asylum seekers
Finland is set to expel tens of thousands of the asylum
seekers who arrived in the country last year amid the ongoing refugee crisis in
Europe.
Paivi Nerg, Finnish Interior Ministry’s administrative
director, announced on Thursday that Helsinki expects to expel nearly 20,000
refugees out of the 32,000 it received in 2015, reports Press TV.
The official stressed that each application was being
evaluated individually.
“In principle we speak of about two-thirds, meaning
approximately 65 percent of the 32,000 will get a negative decision (to their
asylum application),” said Nerg, adding, “In previous years around 60 percent
(of applicants) received a negative decision but now we have somewhat tightened
our criteria for Iraqis, Afghans and Somalis.”
Nerg further said at least two charter flights to deport
Iraqis were planned within the following months.
Earlier in the day, Swedish Interior Minister Anders Ygeman
said Stockholm intends to expel as many as 80,000 refugees whose applications
for asylum have been rejected.
“We are talking about 60,000 people, but the number could
climb to 80,000,” said Ygeman, adding that the government has asked authorities
in charge of refugees to organize their expulsion.
Germany’s government has backed a new draft law to make it
easier to deport foreign nationals who commit crimes in the country. The
proposal made by justice and interior ministers will expedite the deportation
of non-EU foreign nationals found guilty of committing physical and sexual
assaults.
Human Rights Watch says European governments have responded
to an influx of refugees by cracking down on basic freedoms.
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said in a
Tuesday statement that more than 45,000 refugees have entered Greece by sea so
far this year. The statement added that some 90 percent of the new arrivals are
Syrians, Iraqis and Afghans.
Greece served as the main entry point for more than a
million refugees who reached the EU last year.
Austria and Sweden have recently threatened Athens with
potential expulsion from Europe’s passport-free travel zone unless it does more
to stem the refugee influx into the continent.
The current refugee crisis that Europe faces is the worst
one being experienced by the continent since World War II.
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