Yemen Observer
By: Majid al-Kibsi
Thursday, August 12, 2010
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Yemeni Government is seeking to end the prima facie refugee status (automatic asylum) it has been giving to Somalis for the past 20 years.The government justifies their position by explaining that some migrants are economic and should not be granted automatic refugee status, while others are militants seeking to join al-Qaeda in order to destabilize the country.
“Not all Somalis are fleeing conflict. Many are immigrants who come from safe regions such as Bosasso [port in the Puntland region of northern Somalia] in search of better economic opportunities,” Essam al-Mahbashi, a subcommittee member of the National Committee for Refugee Affairs (NCRA), told IRIN. He said the emergence of extremist groups in Somalia, such as al-Shabab, is one of the reasons why Yemen wants to cancel the prima facie refugee status policy.
The NCRA, which works with the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), is mandated to implement the new policy when it comes into effect.
Mohammed al-Fuqmi, a rapporteur for NCRA, said the proposal for the policy change had been submitted to the Council of Ministers for approval two months ago.
“The government needs to secure international support to cover the cost of repatriating illegal immigrants, who are not eligible for refugee status, before the new policy is put into effect,” he said. “The status quo necessitates changing the policy.”
Al-Mahbashi said Somali and non-Somali asylum-seekers would be treated alike under the new policy.
On the other hand, the UNHCR stated that there are still negotiations with the government concerning this matter. “This subject has not been decided yet, and we are anticipating the results as well” said Jamal al-Najar, press information officer in UNHCR.
Source: Yemen Observer