TIRANA, Aug. 12 – Authorities are trying to ebb the tide of Albanians who want to leave the country for greener pastures in Western Europe, as the latest official numbers showed another increase in asylum claims filed by Albanian citizens in the European Union, primarily in Germany.
The narrative has switched to convince Albanians directly that they have no chances in Germany as asylum seekers, in addition to tougher interviews at border crossings to stop potential asylum seekers before they leave.
Deputy Interior Minister Elona Gjebrea has been at the forefront of the efforts, visiting crossing points to meet with border police officials and to appeal to Albanian citizens in the media to give up the idea of seeking asylum in the Schengen area.
“They stand no chance of having their applications approved,” she told reporters, adding five special flights are already scheduled to deport Albanian citizens who have sought asylum in Germany and other EU member states.
Gjebrea said border police authorities are implementing measures to prevent abusive asylum applications. These include calling in German police officers to assist directly at Albanian border exit points, interviewing potential asylum seekers before they even start the trip.
German officials have also joined in the efforts, indicating that not only would the migrants be deported, they would also be billed for the deportation flight home.
Official data from Germany showed nearly 6,000 Albanians sought asylum there in June alone, the month with the latest available official data. Several local and German media outlets have noted the July number is closer to 7,000. That would make it more than 30,000 the number of Albanians who have taken on the effort since the start of the year, according to various official sources.
This is a recent trend, the numbers show. In June 2012, for example, Albania wasn’t even on the top 10 list of asylum seekers, but back then the numbers were much lower from the entire region, official data show.
– Lack of jobs and poverty behind trend –
Lack of jobs and poor economic prospects are the main reasons people want to leave their countries of origin in the Western Balkans, according to a recent study looking at why tens of thousands of Western Balkans citizens are looking to work and live in Western Europe, even if that means filing bogus asylum claims.
A study conducted by the University of Maribor in Slovenia with the support of Germany’s Friedrich Ebert Foundation noted that the biggest concerns in the region among young people revolved around unemployment, job insecurity and poverty. These were also the reasons why most people want to migrate to wealthier and more developed countries.
Albanians were first in the list among young people who want to leave the country, the study found, with two in three saying they want to look for a better life outside the country. Kosovars and Macedonians followed in the list.
The data is also backed by local studies, including one by the Albanian Institute for International Studies.
Among Bulgarians, Romanians, Croats and Slovenes, however, the number was lower, even-though they have the legal right to migrate.
The study’s authors believe this is due to improving conditions in these countries through the implementation of EU standards.
Albania is at least a decade away from EU membership, and as poverty and lack of opportunities at home persist, Albanian authorities are left with preventing the departure of irregular migrants.
One in thirteen Albanians who has applied for asylum in Western Europe gets the status, based mostly on things like blood feuds and different forms of discrimination, according to the latest data.
Some countries, like France, are a bit more generous, but Germany is one of the countries with the strictest requirements and more than 99 percent of Albanians fail in their bid. Deportation quickly follows.
– ‘No economic asylum’ –
German officials said this week two charter planes would fly back about 200 Albanian failed asylum seekers, part of the stepped up efforts by the German authorities for quick repatriation.
“There is no economic asylum in Germany,” the German embassy said in a statement, promising fast processing and quick deportation for Albanians who seek asylum there.
It’s a sentiment echoed by Albanian authorities.
The Director General of Border and Migration Police, Genc Merepeza, said at a border inspection at the Vlore port that economic asylum in EU is not possible and it is an abuse of the system.
Merepeza said that the best solution for those who have already left is a voluntary return to avoid penalties. The others should never leave, he added.
He said Albanian authorities were working well with German police authorities in the mission of bogus asylum prevention.
As Merepeza spoke to reporters, tens of tourists could be seen entering Albania.
“The influx of tourists and vacationers to Albania … has increased by 40 percent compared to last year,” Merepeza said
– Migrants being exploited, gov’t says –
An increase in the number of asylum claims from Albania has German officials perplexed, and the issue was part of discussions during Chancellor Angela Merkel’s visit to Tirana in July.
Both Prime Minister Edi Rama and Merkel said at a joint press conference there is no reason for Albanians to seek asylum when the country is safe and an EU candidate for membership.
Merkel said Germany is indeed looking for skilled workers like nurses and others but migration could only be done through legal channels.
The Albanian government has said the country’s residents are often falling prey to rumors and traffickers promising asylum in Germany.
“This is a big misunderstanding that is being exploited by criminal groups, in order to manipulate people. They take money from people, telling them that Germany is looking for a number of people of different professions. This is a scam, and people must not fall prey to this fraud,” Rama said in April.
However the numbers of asylum seekers have only grown since then.
Albanians enjoy the visa-free regime for the EU Schengen countries since December 2010, and the recent exodus may serve to push western European country like Germany to reinstall the visa regime temporarily, a move that worries Albanian authorities.
The rise in numbers from Albania also come as there has been a huge increase in asylum seekers from the Middle East and Africa, causing hostility to immigrants in Western Europe.
Overall across the EU, a total of 626,065 applications from asylum seekers were recorded last year — an annual increase of 44 percent.
One of the main reasons is the increase in refugees fleeing the war in Syria. Their numbers rose from 50,000 in 2013 to 123,000 last year, with around 60 percent of this figure seeking asylum in Germany and Sweden.
