Ping to the Swedish Ping List.
Posted on 02/14/2007 6:42:34 AM PST by A. Pole
STOCKHOLM, Feb 13 (Reuters) - Sweden's migration minister said on Tuesday he would this week ask other European Union nations to help shoulder the growing burden of asylum seekers fleeing violence in Iraq for the Nordic nation.
"We feel that it is important that more countries bear a share of this responsibility," Migration Minister Tobias Billstrom told Reuters.
Billstrom said he would raise the issue with colleagues on Thursday at an EU ministers' meeting in Brussels, although the question is not on the formal agenda.
A total of 9,065 Iraqis sought asylum in Sweden in 2006, up from 2,330 in 2005. The number is forecast to more than double to 20,000 this year, he said.
Sweden is receiving more than half of the applications from Iraqis seeking asylum in Europe, Billstrom added.
Jesus Carmona, spokesman for the European Commission's Directorate of Justice and Home Affairs, said there may not be an easy way to divert the flow of Iraqis to other EU nations.
"The only way would be on a voluntary basis other member states could take some responsibility," Carmona said.
"But that's a delicate question because you need the asylum seeker to be happy to move to another country."
Under EU directives, the country that receives an asylum application is responsible for handling it.
Sweden's appeal lies in its relative openness to refugees and to its established 70,000-strong Iraqi community.
"We work constantly on providing people who have a need with shelter but I would like to point out that Sweden can't help all people," Billstrom said, stressing that all asylum seekers face a full screening before their applications are accepted.
He stopped short of urging other EU nations to further open their borders.
"If one is going to have a constructive debate, and Sweden wants to have a constructive debate, then it doesn't do to sit down and point fingers," the minister said.
"This is about turning the thing the other way around. How do we attract more people to the other countries of the EU?"
By 2010, the EU hopes to complete an agreement on a common asylum system with a harmonised set of rights and obligations for all asylum seekers.
At least in this case, they could have a valid point.
Boy will they get a surprise they start giving asylum to some of the pukes blowing up people in market places.
Ping to the Swedish Ping List.
There is another scandal related to this that is not mentioned in this story.
The Iraqi embassy in Sweden has apparently been issuing thousands of fake Iraqi passports for cash. These people with the fake passports, promtly gets granted asylum in Sweden.
This has already caused a minor diplomatic incident between Iraq, Sweden and Denmark. Denmark is irate that some of these fake "Swedish Iraqis" are entering Denmark.
Even the Norwegian police is invesigating the whole brouhaha. Infact, I think it was the Norwegian investigators who blew the lid of the whole operation.
According to a Swedish paper, as many as 26 000 fake Iraqi passports have been issued. Additionally it was just revealed in Swedish media that the Swedish immigration services has known about it for a long time, but said nothing and done nothing about it.
Scaniaboy, do you know anymore about this?
Cheers.
Sounds like there's a sucker born every minute in Sweden in parallel with the amount of Iraqi asylum seekers being let through the door at the same time..
Sweden, your gonna pay dearly for this foolish blunder, just look at what's happened here in the UK with the policys of our gormless and clueless politicians.......need I say more??
Europe wants more mooooooslims,as far as I'm concerned they can have em all !!!
No, that's about it. You are correct - it appears that the story broke thanks to the Norwegian investigators.
However, all amid Libby/Plamegate stories, the Bildt/Sahlin scandal (so far only for Swedish consumption) etc I will try and see if I can dig up something.
Cheers and thanks for the ping,
SB
PS: Snapphanen at http://dansk-svensk.blogspot.com/ has followed this story, at least from the Danish viewpoint. Good blog, but you know that already, don't you?
The really sad part of this story is that it was the conservative alliance that opened the floodgates last time they were in power in 1991.
:-(
An epiphany is on the horizon. The question is whether it will occur in time for you to save yourselves. Right now, the prospects appear to be somewhere between dismal and "abandon hope".
BTW, isn't "Abandon Hope" the sign over the entrance to Hell? And isn't the Road to Hell paved with good intentions? Ol' Toby needs to clean his spectacles; he doesn't seem to be seeing very clearly. Maybe they're just getting steamed up--must be the heat.
Sweden has 9 million people, so 20,000 corresponds to 600,000 in USA.
Here in the UK we're paying the price already, I think you have a little more breathing time in Sweden than we do but I think what will happen is that everyone (indeginous population) will wake up to reality suddenly and things will get a little nasty for a while!
Incidentally as an aside, I can't imagine for one minute that Iraqis are accustomed to your freezing weather, maybe that's one in your favour.....:o).
Get em to take their chances in the frozen wilderness of Lappland, see how long they last!!
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