Doc. 9965

13 October 2003

Asylum seekers and irregular migrants in Turkey

Motion for a recommendation

presented by Mr Branger and others

1.       Turkey has traditionally been a country of important migration given its geographical position as the natural crossroad between Asia, Africa and Europe. Turkey is a country of transit, destination and origin. Over the last years, and particularly since the early 1990s, along with the progress of globalisation, and due to armed conflicts and political developments in the region, the phenomenon has increased considerably.

2.       The main feature of migration to and from Turkey is its irregular nature with nearly 100 000 clandestine migrants intercepted each year in 2000, 2001 and 2002. Each year, an estimated 200 000 to 300 000 irregular migrants enter Turkey of whom about half work in the country illegally for some time before moving on or going back. While major migration flows come from Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iran, significant numbers have been arriving from Council of Europe member states, namely Romania, Ukraine, Moldova, the Russian Federation and Georgia.

3.       This situation puts an important burden on the Turkish authorities and can partly explain some difficulties faced by them in adapting the legal, administrative, economic, financial and social measures to the migration realities. In particular, two questions need closer examination and may raise some concern:

      - respect for the human rights of migrants irrespective of their status, be they legal or irregular, and compliance with the 1951 Geneva Convention on refugees, in particular with its provisions concerning access to asylum procedure and the principle of non-refoulement;

      - management of migration flows, efficient combating of trafficking and smuggling in humans, cooperation with countries of origin and destination.

4.       The Parliamentary Assembly is aware of an important progress accomplished by Turkey in recent years in the legislative field, regarding migratory policies and administrative practice, as well as of increasing cooperation with international agencies and countries of origin and destination, which have been bringing visible results in the above mentioned areas.

5.       However, there are still some points of concern including geographical limitation to the 1951 Geneva Convention some restrictions imposed on the right to asylum time limit for the presentation of application, access to asylum procedure, living conditions of asylum seekers and refugees.

6.       Therefore, the Assembly considers it necessary to examine, on the one hand, the situation of those who can benefit from protection of international Conventions and, on the other hand, the problem of irregular migrants in Turkey with a view to presenting a recommendation for concrete different measures to be taken in order to improve the situation of the people belonging to these categories.

Signed (see overleaf)

Signed ¹:

Branger, France, EDG

Akselsen, Norway, SOC

Etherington, United Kingdom, SOC

Hagberg, Sweden, SOC

Higgins, Ireland, EPP/CD

Judd, United Kingdom, SOC

Nessa, Italy, EPP/CD

Tkáč, Slovakia, EDG

Torrado, Spain, SOC

Vera Jardim, Portugal, SOC

Zwerver, Netherlands, SOC

¹        SOC: Socialist Group

      EPP/CD: Group of the European People’s Party

      EDG: European Democratic Group

      LDR : Liberal, Democratic and Reformers’ Group

      UEL: Group of the Unified European Left

      NR: not registered in a group