The influx of applicants for refugee status or subsidiary protection in the Vitebsk region significantly decreased in 2017

Jean-Yves Bouchardie is in the regional center on a visit from May 17-18. During this time, he met with representatives of the citizenship and migration department of the Internal Affairs Directorate of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee, as well as the Vitebsk Regional Organization of the Belarusian Red Cross Society, and talked with refugees and asylum seekers themselves who are in the temporary accommodation center.

A meeting was held at the Refugee Counseling Service with natives of Ukraine. "This is one of our regular visits to the regions of Belarus, where we meet with applicants and our partners to learn about their pressing issues and assess changes since the last visit. In particular, during the past period, new applicants from different countries have appeared in the Vitebsk region, including natives of Iran, Pakistan, and other states. But if we compare the current situation with what it was in 2015 and 2016, the number of applications for refugee status or additional protection has significantly decreased. Since the beginning of 2017, only 17 people have applied for this in the Vitebsk region. In 2015, there were almost 1250 applicants nationwide, of which about 200 were from the Vitebsk region. The decrease in 2016 was by about half, and now we see that it has decreased to tens," said Jean-Yves Bouchardie.

Only three applicants (including two with families) who had already received state protection attended the meeting at the Refugee Counseling Service. Communication with the applicants showed that the range of issues they address remains the same: employment, housing, financial assistance, compensation for medical expenses and medications. But there are also specific ones, for example, related to sending children to school, especially if it concerns children with developmental disabilities.

"Given the significant decrease in the number of

refugees and asylum seekers, the issue of creating a specialized center for settling those granted subsidiary protection or refugee status is not on the agenda. However, at present, there is a comprehensive project that will start at the end of 2017 or early 2018 and will be implemented jointly by UNHCR, the International Organization for Migration, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belarus, and the State Border Committee. One of the components of the project is migration flow management. Among the migrants may be people who fall under our jurisdiction - refugees, asylum seekers. Consequently, this infrastructure project can contribute to improving the accommodation for such persons," noted Jean-Yves Bouchard.

Ekaterina Knyazeva - BELTA.