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An asylum seeker
Introduction
An asylum seeker is an individual who ran away from their countries due to several factors such as war and other factors that could harm them and their families (Allard, 2013). On the other hand, refugees are people who have been recognized under the convention of 1951 concerning the status of a refugee to be a refugee. The magnitude and the complexity of the issues resulting from the flow of the refugees and the asylum seekers pose a huge challenge for many countries, Australia being one of them. The countries that experience a vast flow of asylum seekers struggle to maintain a balance between offering protection to the displaced individuals and maintaining control of their borders.
At the opening of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) office in the year 1951, there were about 1.4 million refugees worldwide. At the beginning of the year 2010, there were about 44.4 million refugees all over the world. This number comprised of about 14. 8 million refugees, 984000 asylum seekers, and 28.1 million individuals who were displaced internally. Most refugees and asylum seekers were displaced due to the persistence of natural disasters in their countries (Garnier,& Piva, 2019).
The government of Australia has recognized these global trends stating that the number of individuals seeking asylum from the country is minimum in relation to other countries in Europe and other parts of the world. The country has a history of allowing refugees for resettlement. Over 752 0000 refugees, as well as displaced individuals, have settled in Australia since the end of world war 2.However, there is a high level of miscommunication and confusion in the public debate in Australia pertaining to the terms refugees, asylum seekers, and the illegals such as the boat and the queue jumpers (Gomez Diez, 2013).
Therefore, the purpose of this study is to examine the features of the global network on the refugees and the asylum seekers.
Difference between asylum seekers and refugees
The terms asylum seekers and refugees are always used interchangeably. An asylum seeker is a person who seeks international protection, but whose claim for the refugees’ status has not been granted (Hochman, 2015). This contrasts with the refugees who have been recognized under the 1951 convention that relates to the status of refugees of being refugees. According to the convention, the definition of the refugees is that a refugee is a person who is outside his/her country following the fear of being persecuted due to different political opinions, membership of a particular social group, race, nationality, and religion.
However, the definition of refugees does not cover those who leave their country because of war, famine, natural disasters, or other civil disturbance to seek a better life. Therefore, refugees are individuals who run away from their country for fear of persecution and cannot return safely to their country due to the existing circumstances.
The primary question arising in consideration to the asylum seekers is whether they do it legally.This is because illegal immigrants are defined as people who enter a country without fulfilling the legal entry requirements. However, in the 1948, Universal declaration of human rights, article 34, and every person have the right of seeking asylum. The refugee convention of 1951 also do not require imposition of penalties on the individuals who enter a country illegally especially those who directly come from a country where their freedom is being threatened. According to the UNHCR, a person with a well-founded fear of prosecution should be seen as a refugee and not labeled as an illegal immigrant. Asylum seekers usually lack other means of escape. The only means of escape that they may be possessing is probably the illegal means and using documentation that are not sincere. The refugees’ council in Australia notes the difficulties that the asylum seekers encounters while requesting the documentation before the departure.
According to the council, the passport application and the exit Visa can be dangerous for some refugees. Seeking the documentation can put the lives of the asylum seekers at risk. In such situations, the refugees may have to travel through false documentation and arrive without the right documents. However, the Australian government, classify the Asylum seekers as non-citizens due to their arrival without the valid Visas. The term unlawful however, does imply that the asylum seekers have committed a criminal offence.
The contradiction that comes with the term illegal immigrants is not left out when it comes to those who arrive with a boat’s use without a proper authorization, or those who arrive using other means such as air without a valid authorization. Therefore, the Australian government has taken a step of intercepting those unauthorized boats that attempts to enter Australia and transfer those individuals on the Christmas island until they state their reasons of wanting to enter Australia Illegally. The government officials will then determine if the reasons stated by the individuals will require the engagement of the Australian government in granting protection, if so, the government will grant the asylum seeker protection under the Refugee Status Assessment (Kinlen, 2013).The term illegal in Europe is mostly used to describe individuals who tend to overstay at the Visa conditions’ breach.
The other major question that arises with term asylum seekers is whether they are ‘queue jumpers’. It is believed that those arriving in Australia using the illegal boats take the place of the more deserving refugees who had arrived hence, jump the queue. The concept of orderly queue however, is not accorded in the asylum process. According to the Chief Executive Office of the Refugee Council of Australia the country is not supposed to be bothered by those individuals who enters the country seeking protection under the refugee convention .If those individuals would genuinely be doing so, they will choose to go to other refugee camps until the country comes with the term of resettling them.
Means of transport used by the Asylum seekers
It is believed that most of the Asylum seekers arrived in Australia by the means of air with their valid Visa and later seek for asylum protection in Australia. The arrivals by boat only makes a small proportion of those applying for the asylum .However, the proportions of boats arrivals and the non-boat arrivals have shifted over the recent years due to the increased maritime arrivals (Kirkwood, McKinlay, & McVittie, 2013). The table below shows the proportion of the asylum applicants who arrived by boat and by air up to the year 2014.
|
|
2008-2010 |
2010-2012 |
2012-2014 |
| Unauthorized boat arrivals | 15% | 46% | 43% |
| Non-Maritime arrivals | 85% | 54% | 57% |
Since the boat’s arrivals have witnessed a significant increase over the recent financial year, the arrivals by the boat continue to be the center of attention. They normally stand a higher chance of being recognized as the refugees than the asylum seekers arriving by air (Strijk, Meijel, & Gamel, 2010).The reason much consideration is given to those arriving by boat is that most of them are normally the refugees, but most of those who arrive by air are not.
The figures of the unauthorized arrivals in Australia is more precise as compared to the figures from Europe. This is because of the geographical position of Australia .It is normally easier for the Australian government to monitor the unauthorized arrivals on maritime and the air arrivals (Lindblom-Häkkinen, & Anttila, 2018).Like Australia, it is estimated that irregular arrivals in Europe comprise less of the boat arrivals than the air arrivals. However, it is believed that most of the individuals who arrive in Europe with the use of irregular means, usually have their Visas and only less will seek for asylum protection.
Dangers of Unauthorized boat arrivals
The unauthorized arrivals of the asylum seekers by the boat in Australia usually pose danger of diseases. They can also be a threat to the country’s security if not properly checked. Currently, the unauthorized boat arrivals in Australia are normally transferred and detained in the Christmas Island for health checks and as a means of comprehensive security measures. Doing this helps the government to find out whether the asylum seekers have legitimate reasons of doing so.
A thorough health assessment is done to identify anything that may require attention. Health assessment helps prevent entry of an individual with health problems that may pose danger to Australians. Health assessment has even proved to be more important owing to COVID -19 pandemic that has hit the universe (Momodu, 2016). Many nations are currently faced with the challenge of continuing to offer protection to the refugees and the Asylum seekers. This is because in as much as the pandemic has challenged the global health system, it has come as a test to the common humanity. Therefore, the refugees and the asylum seekers are faced with the challenge of risking their health while seeking protection, while at the same time meet with the challenge of closed borders.
The Global conventions on refugees and asylum seekers have therefore, encouraged various nations to put in place measures that will protect both the refugees and the asylum seekers in response to the pandemic (Schmid, & Dodt, 2017). The convention states that everyone’s safety is of utmost importance because no one is ever safe until everyone is safe. The convention insisted on sharing the burden of the refugees and the asylum seekers among the developed nations.
Conclusion
The terms asylum seekers and refugees are always used interchangeably. An asylum seeker is a person who seeks the international protection but whose claim for the refugees’ status has not been granted. This contrasts with the refugees who have been recognized under the 1951 convention that relates to the status of refugees of being refugees. According to the convention, the definition of the refuges is that a refugee is a person who is outside his/her country following the fear of being persecuted due to different political opinion, membership of a particular social group, race, nationality , and religion. It is believed that most of the Asylum seekers arrived in Australia arrive by the means of air with their valid Visa and later seek for asylum protection in Australia. The arrivals by boat only makes a small proportion of those applying for the asylum.
References
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Lindblom-Häkkinen, S., & Anttila, M. (2018). ASYLUM SEEKER OR SEEKER OF A BETTER LIFE? WHAT MAKES A DIFFERENCE WITHIN CATEGORIZATION?. BORDER SECURITY AND MANAGEMENT, 2(7), 82. https://doi.org/10.17770/bsm.v2i7.3486
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