UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Filippo Grandi, is calling on countries to lift remaining pandemic-related asylum restrictions.
More than two years on from the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, at least 20 countries across the world today still deny access to asylum for people fleeing conflict, violence, and persecution based on public health measures. Some of these countries apply exceptions for the entry of asylum seekers in an inconsistent or arbitrary manner, UNHCR said.
“With wars and violence raging across the world, and people fleeing from persecution, these measures deny the fundamental human right of people to seek asylum. Women, men and children continue to be turned away at land borders and sea; or are returned or transferred to countries where they may face threats to their life or freedom,” Grandi said.
The Immigration and Refugee News Digest 