Post by Logan on Jan 20, 2016 15:15:47 GMT -6
VIENNA -- Austrian President Heinz Fischer is calling for a "more fair and balanced" asylum policy in Europe, as the number of migrants to Austria nearly quadrupled last year.
Fischer spoke in Tunis alongside Tunisian President Beji Caid Essebsi on Wednesday.
He said proposals for reforming asylum policy would be debated in the country's parliament before being proposed to the European Union. "The goal is to achieve a more fair and better balanced asylum policy in Europe," Fischer said.
Austria earlier Wednesday announced it is putting a cap on the number of refugees it wants to accept - 37,500 this year and a total of 127,500 through 2019. Officials said the government will be examining legal options on how it can react if those numbers are exceeded.
Last year the country received 90,000 requests for asylum, up from 25,000 a year earlier, Fischer said. He added that any reforms would still conform to international conventions on human rights.
Continued at hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/E/EU_EUROPE_MIGRANTS_THE_LATEST?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2016-01-20-14-21-12 .
Fischer spoke in Tunis alongside Tunisian President Beji Caid Essebsi on Wednesday.
He said proposals for reforming asylum policy would be debated in the country's parliament before being proposed to the European Union. "The goal is to achieve a more fair and better balanced asylum policy in Europe," Fischer said.
Austria earlier Wednesday announced it is putting a cap on the number of refugees it wants to accept - 37,500 this year and a total of 127,500 through 2019. Officials said the government will be examining legal options on how it can react if those numbers are exceeded.
Last year the country received 90,000 requests for asylum, up from 25,000 a year earlier, Fischer said. He added that any reforms would still conform to international conventions on human rights.
Continued at hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/E/EU_EUROPE_MIGRANTS_THE_LATEST?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2016-01-20-14-21-12 .