Fear of refugee exodus after Slovakia's entry to EU not come true

Fears that the number of asylum seekers would soar in Slovakia after its entry to the European Union have not come true, Slovak Immigration Office director Bernard Priecel announced earlier this week. Although there was a certain increase, the figures are certainly not dramatic, he said. The fear that the Slovak asylum system would collapse as the result of the implementation of the Dublin Convention has not materialised either. According to this document, asylum seekers detained in the European Union should be returned back to the country through which they entered the common EU space. There were forecasts that large numbers of refugees enter the EU area precisely via the Slovak-Ukrainian border. Under the Dublin Convention, Slovakia should only accept about 60 refugees a year, Priecel said.

Alexander Duleba from the Slovak Society for Foreign Policy, sees realistic that Slovakia will be able to meet the demands for the entry to the Schengen area by the end of 2006. According to him, there are no problems in the protection of the Slovak border with Ukraine. "The police squad has been reformed. Only professional guards and not soldiers have been used to protect the border since last January. In addition, the number of guard patrols and departments have been increased," Duleba said. Since 2000, a considerable increase in the number of attempts at illegal border crossings has been registered. Nevertheless, the Slovak border police have started working better and the work of the Ukrainian police have also improved.

About 5,180 people have applied for asylum in Slovakia in the first five months of this year. "This figure will, however, grow further because Slovakia will become a transit country," the Slovak Immigration Office director said. He added that Slovakia was planning the opening of further refugee centres, which will be located in East Slovakia.