Immigration crisis calls for direct control over routes, says House Speaker Kover in Lisbon

Lisbon (MTI) – Handling the immigration crisis requires direct control over migration routes, efforts against humans smuggling, and measures to reduce the pressure for emigration in countries of origin, House Speaker Laszlo Kover said in Lisbon on Monday.

Speaking at a meeting of his counterparts in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union for the Mediterranean, Kover said that effective management of issues around migration in the Mediterranean was also crucial for Hungary.

Hungary is obliged to help the persecuted and grant asylum to refugees, Kover said, but also noted that in recent years an unprecedented exodus started in countries where “people are dissatisfied with their economic conditions”.

Compared to its population, Hungary receives the second largest number of asylum seekers in the European Union, following Sweden, Kover said. He added that in the first four months of 2015 alone, over 30,000 asylum applications were submitted to Hungary’s authorities.

Kover called cooperation between countries of origin, transit, and destination crucial, and said that options for a resolution should be negotiated together.

“It is important that we apply the Common European Asylum System in a coordinated way, and effectively fight abuse of asylum rights and human smuggling,” Kover said.

Photo: MTI

Source: http://mtva.hu/hu/hungary-matters