3 ms·

How does failing to apply for asylum make them no longer refugees? What do they become by your reasoning?

• NLips 11y ago
  They are people who have successfully made it to a safe country. They are not in the camp because they are refugees fleeing danger, but because they specifically want to get to the UK. Whether or not that is reasonable (e.g. because of family or other reasons) is beside the point of 'are they refugees fleeing danger?'
  • Joeboy 11y ago
    > because of family or other reasons Another reason would be speaking English and not French. I would really rather not have to apply for asylum in a language I don't speak. And of course if they're fleeing danger and their asylum application is unsafe, then they are unsafe.
    • eCa 11y ago
      > Another reason would be speaking English and not French Just an aside: Only two countries on the top ten countries for asylum seekers have English as an official language[1][2]. [1] http://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/624/media/images/77922000/gif/_77922434_where_applicants_go_20140916_624.gif http://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/624/media/images/77922000/gif/_... [2] http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-24636868 http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-24636868
• dageshi 11y ago
  They become economic migrants at that point. They avoid a "safe" country in the hope of reaching one which suits them better in terms of economy/opportunities. The issue of migrants trying to illegally enter the UK via Calais has existed for decades at this point, any improvement to the conditions in Calais would encourage more people to try and make the journey so nothing is done for fear of turning a bad situation into an even worse one. The UK public saw what happened when Mrs Merkel said there was no limits on the number of refugee's Germany would take, they are not in the mood for their politicians to make a similar mistake.