Asylum seekers in the Czech Republic Katarina Fagošová

Definition  Refugees form a subgroup of migrants  Refugee is a person who is outside their own country‘s territory owing to fear of persecution on grounds of ethnicity, nationality, religion, political opinions or social activities (1951 UN Refugee Convention)

Basic principles  Every person has the right of asylum  Every country establishes its own rules for accepting refugees and its decisions can not be challenged  With the status of refugee a person gets a protection of a sovereign authority (the country)

Czech law terminology  Czech law does not know the term „refugee“… instead:  „asylum seeker“ – a person who applyed for a status of refugee  „asylum status holder“ – a person who was accorded a status of refugee

Czech asylum law and procedures  Asylum Act No. 325/1999  Asylum and Migration Policies Department (Ministry of the Interior of the CR)  Asylum facilities: Reception centre Reception centre Residence centre Residence centre Integration asylum centre Integration asylum centre

Asylum facilities

Asylum seekers  Decline in the number of applicants after 2004 (2005 – 1,500 asylum seekers less than in 2004)  ,878 new asylum seekers people were accorded asylum people were accorded asylum new asylum seekers new asylum seekers - 37 people were accorded asylum - 37 people were accorded asylum - 2,054 asylum status holders - 2,054 asylum status holders

Countries of origin COUNTRY  Ukrajine  Turkey  Mongolia  Kazakhstan  Belarus  Vietnam  Russia  Cuba  Nigeria  other NUMBER OF PEOPLE - % % % % % % % % % % %

Integration of asylum status holders  Residence permission  Integration asylum centre  Governmental integration program - free czech language courses - free czech language courses (compulsory school attendance for (compulsory school attendance for children – asylum seekers as well) children – asylum seekers as well) - cheaper „integration flats“ - cheaper „integration flats“

Problems of the integration process  Unemployment  Integration into the local community

Evaluation of the asylum policy PLUS PLUS -Intergration policy („integration flats“) („integration flats“)MINUS -Long asylum proceeding -Amnesty International ČR charges it for nontransparency, inhuman treatment of the applicants and too low percentage of the asylum status accordance (2-3 %)

Sources    race.doc race.doc race.doc    