Last Year was extraordinary, because a migration pressure has reached Hungary like never seen before - said Zsuzsanna Végh, the General Director of the Office of Immigration and Nationality (OIN) at the press conference.
She said, although it was previously signified on international forums, that the importance of the Balkan route will increase due to the illegal migration, the decision-makers of the European Union saw no serious risk in these alerts. However last year extreme growth could be perceived: the number of the illegal border crossers was more than 414 000.
Zsuzsanna Végh said: Among the illegal migrants, who moved on the West Balkan route, there were genuine refugees from the crisis zones, and there were people who were on their way for economic reasons.
Photo: Gergely Botár/kormany.hu
She added that in the first half of the year the number of asylum applications almost "passed along" the number of the aliens’ policy procedures, however in early summer the gap has grown, people who arrived illegal did not apply for asylum, they even explicitly refused to cooperate with the authorities and denied to contribute to the registration.
The General Director stated: according to the data of November, Hungary has registered the second most (177 000) asylum application in the European Union, regarding the number of asylum applicants per thousand inhabitants Hungary was the first between the 28 Member State.
Most of the applicants came from the Middle East, central and southern parts of Africa north and central parts of Asia and the Western Balkans. Most of the applicants were Syrian - or claimed to be - as well as Afghan, Kosovo, Pakistani, Iraqi, they were together the ninety per cent of all applicants. Earlier this year, the applicants came mainly from Kosovo, later people from crisis zone dominated.
Comparing to the previous years the number of unaccompanied minors were increased last year, 8 000 of them were registered, but many of them has left the country within a short period of time. In the matter of the most of the asylum application procedures – in 152 000 case -, the process had to be terminated, because the asylum applicant has left for unknown location. The applicants were conducted in international protection in the 15 percent of the merit conducted procedures, primarily Syrians, Afghans and Somalians.
The OIN expends approximately HUF 5.5 billion expressly for the feeding, healthcare and for the appanage of the Refugees.
Photo: Gergely Botár/kormany.hu
The Director General said: they endeavored to record the fingerprints and to transmit them to the international database, to take biometric photos, to register personal data, and to capacity building.
She recalled: on th 16th of September there were riots in Röszke, although the migrants could have sought asylum just within a couple of meters from the location in the transit zone, but they did not.
She denoted: as a result of the government measures - the modified legislation, the temporary technical closing of borders, the closing of the green border, creating the transit zones, changing the asylum rules – ‘the problems related to migration has temporarily been solved’, the routes of migration have changed and the migration flow currently bypasses the country.
The number of illegal border crossers has declined; in the last two months of the year barely a thousand apprehensions supervened. The number of the asylum seekers has significantly dropped, around 5500; in three months it did not reach the number of two-three weeks in the summer.
Károly Konrát, the Parliamentary secretary of the Ministry of Interior emphasized that the government maintained a definite migrant policy from the very first moment and took action to prevent the danger first. These measures defended not only the Hungarian borders, but also defended the borders of the EU.
He denoted: the starter budget of the office in 2015 was HUF 9.7 billion, during the year the government has given an additional HUF 10 billion to the OIN. He noted: it is regrettable that the EU has offered much less subsidies for Hungary than for other stakeholder EU countries. He emphasized that the legislative changes made it possible to conduct the asylum procedures faster and more rigorously. The Secretary of State declared the work of the Office successful and efficient but he also noted the ‘we must be vigilant’ because the migration crisis is not solved, we do not know how the situation develops.
Photo: Gergely Botár/kormany.hu
He pointed out that thousands of migrants are still arriving from Greece, and as long as the EU can not achieve the protection of the Greek border, the problem will not cease. He referred to the fact that according to the forecasts this year 1 million migrants may reach Europe. With regard to Austria reinstated border controls, in response to the questions he explained that it shows that Austria realized that they can not maintain their previous position. The decision is still fresh, the experience will be assessed, but it is certain that the border check will slow down to get to Austria- he added.
Answering the question, Zsuzsanna Végh said, that the rest of the EU is struggling with the problem that the applicants for asylum ‘disappear’ in the eyes of the authorities, that is why there are only few returns and if they are even returned – for example to Hungary – the migrants disappear there as well and ‘they are wandering among the Member States’.
With regard to the incidence at the reception point at Kiskunhalas, she emphasized that last year more than one hundred extraordinary incidence happened, these were all investigated and the OIM does so in this case as well.
18th January 2016.
(MTI)
