Generally, over many years, various countries and regions have marked their own memorial days and even weeks dedicated to forced migrants. One of the most famous is African Refugee Day, which is observed in several countries on June 20. Expressing solidarity with the Black continent, which leads in the number of forced migrants, the UN established this day as a universal one.
According to UNHCR data, the number of refugees has increased by more than 20% over five years. Experts at the UN High Commissioner believe that the main reason is the ongoing war in Iraq and the long-standing crisis in the Darfur province. For example, by the end of last year, about one and a half million people left Iraq, most of whom moved to neighboring Syria and Jordan. From Sudan, according to various estimates, from 700,000 to two million have already left.
Currently, there are four main classes of refugees in the world: war refugees, political refugees, religious, and sexual minorities. True, the latter are accepted only in the super-liberal Netherlands. The countries of Eastern Europe, which over the past 10 years have been favored primarily by political fugitives, are essentially a kind of springboard for moving to Old Europe. Moreover, there are not many conditions for their living in the countries of the former socialist camp. For example, in Poland, a person who manages to obtain refugee status is a rarity. Many limit themselves to obtaining a regular residence permit and receive no benefit from the state.
The German Ministry of the Interior, together with the Federal Statistical Office, recently published another report on the quantitative and qualitative composition of foreigners living in Germany. These data confirm not only the fact that Germany is the most hospitable state after the USA (15.3 million immigrants out of 82 million population), but also the rumor about a compassionate society that accepts the most refugees from hot spots of the planet. Germany remains favorable to refugees fleeing wars and political persecution. In 2001 there were 69,000 of them here. A year later it became 75,000 and stayed at about that level until 2005. Then, apparently, the treasury could no longer bear such a burden and today slightly more than 66,000 refugees live in Germany on state benefits. And it is becoming increasingly difficult for them to obtain political asylum in Germany. Currently, 28,914 people are waiting for this status. Compared with 98,644 applicants in 1998, the difference is quite significant.
Artem OPARIN, Sergei ZOLOVKIN.
Novye Izvestiya