Migrants Claim Asylum In Cyprus
12More than half of the migrants who landed at RAF Akrotiri a month ago have now claimed asylum in the Republic of Cyprus, officials said today.
For the past three weeks the group of 115 Lebanese, Syrians and Palestinians have been housed in a tented transit camp at Dhekelia, just outside the British military garrison.
The British Government has refused their demands for passage to the UK and last weekend they were served with letters by the Sovereign Base Areas (SBA) Administration giving them a choice to either claim asylum in the Republic or face deportation back to Lebanon.
Today an SBA spokesman said “just over 50 per cent” of the migrants had now asked for permission to stay.
He declined to give an exact figure saying it was subject to change.
Those applications will now be processed by the Cypriot authorities who will decide whether or not to let them stay.
The remaining migrants are now expected to be served with letters informing them they will be removed back to Lebanon.
A spokesman explained;
“Once issued with a deportation order they have seven days in which to lodge an appeal,”
“We have provided them with independent lawyers.”
Questions remain over what will happen to any migrants who are refused asylum in the Republic of Cyprus.
The SBA says it is “in discussions” with the Government of Cyprus over the issue.
However, the Cypriot Ministry of Foreign Affairs told Forces News today that any failed asylum seekers would remain the responsibility of the SBA.
The migrants were brought ashore inside RAF Akrotiri on 21 October after they entered SBA waters in two fishing boats.
They claimed to have paid smugglers $4,000 dollars each for the trip from Turkey to Greece but been abandoned at sea, eventually drifting towards Cyprus.
Palestinian Ibrahim Maarouf, 37, is among the migrants currently housed inside the transit camp at Dhekelia.
He said he believed as many as 70 people had now claimed asylum.
“I’m not one of them,” he said, “I’m still fighting for my rights.”
“I ran away from a country where the only help you get is help to die. But I’ve been told that going to Mars will be easier for me than going to the UK.”
The SBA authorities declined to say when the deportation orders will be served.
But they said any migrants who have not yet claimed asylum are still free to do so.