Thursday, January 19, 2012

1, 895 Nigerians seek asylum in Switzerland

GENEVA According to Swiss government statistics the main countries of origin for asylum seekers in 2011 were Eritrea with 3,356 applications, followed by Tunisia with 2,574 requests, and Nigeria with 1,895The number of asylum applications in Switzerland jumped about 45 percent in 2011 from the preceding year, federal migration office statistics showed Thursday.
Last year 22,551 asylum applications were filed in Switzerland, the highest number since 2002, the office said in a statement.
"This large influx of asylum applications was mainly due to the crisis in North Africa," and an influx to Europe from March, said the Swiss authorities.
The statement warned that Tunisian asylum seekers were "unlikely to be able to stay in Switzerland" although forcible deportations to the North African nation had been suspended due to upheavals there.
Of the total applications filed, 3,711 people were granted asylum compared with 3,449 the year before, an increase of 7.6 percent.

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