South Korea's justice minister said Thursday that the government will study ways to ease public concerns about the sudden inflows of Yemeni asylum seekers while doing its duty as a signatory to the U.N. convention on refugees.
In recent months, more than 500 Yemenis arrived on South Korea's southern resort island of Jeju and sought asylum. The move sparked concerns about possible bogus claimants seeking economic advantages and led the government to ban them from leaving the island for other areas pending reviews of their refugee applications.
Minister Park Sang-ki told lawmakers that the government is mulling ways to soothe such public concerns and act as a responsible member of the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees at the same time.
"While putting priority on protecting our nationals, we need to also consider our responsibility as a signatory to the international convention," Park said.
Jeju has offered a visa-free program to allow foreign visitors to stay there for up to 90 days without restrictions. As of June, the Ministry of Justice excluded Yemen from the list of beneficiaries in a bid to curb sudden increases in the number of refugees on the island.
"We also plan to apply the exclusion to Egyptians. If there is a sudden hike in the number of foreign visitors from a certain country, we cannot help reviewing the (visa-free program)," he said.
The minister said the country plans to reduce the period of deliberation for Yemeni refugees and complete the process within two or three months.
The ministry said in late June that it will seek to revise the Refugee Act to prevent fake asylum seekers from abusing the asylum application system and take measures to significantly speed up deliberations on applications. (Yonhap)
In recent months, more than 500 Yemenis arrived on South Korea's southern resort island of Jeju and sought asylum. The move sparked concerns about possible bogus claimants seeking economic advantages and led the government to ban them from leaving the island for other areas pending reviews of their refugee applications.
Minister Park Sang-ki told lawmakers that the government is mulling ways to soothe such public concerns and act as a responsible member of the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees at the same time.
"While putting priority on protecting our nationals, we need to also consider our responsibility as a signatory to the international convention," Park said.
Jeju has offered a visa-free program to allow foreign visitors to stay there for up to 90 days without restrictions. As of June, the Ministry of Justice excluded Yemen from the list of beneficiaries in a bid to curb sudden increases in the number of refugees on the island.
"We also plan to apply the exclusion to Egyptians. If there is a sudden hike in the number of foreign visitors from a certain country, we cannot help reviewing the (visa-free program)," he said.
The minister said the country plans to reduce the period of deliberation for Yemeni refugees and complete the process within two or three months.
The ministry said in late June that it will seek to revise the Refugee Act to prevent fake asylum seekers from abusing the asylum application system and take measures to significantly speed up deliberations on applications. (Yonhap)
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