80 percent of Yemeni refugees interviewed on asylum request

Yemeni asylum seekers wait for consultation with the National Human Rights Commission of Korea in June. Yonhap.

By Jung Hae-myoung

So far 382 Yemeni refugees on Jeju Island, including six minors, have been interviewed on their request for asylum, immigration officials said Wednesday.

According to the Korea Immigration Service (KIS), 481 Yemenis have applied for asylum, with 79.4 percent processed between June 25 and Sept 4. This is slower than planned.

The Justice Ministry last month assigned seven officials to deal with the refugees, with four interpreters to speed up the process.

Those interviewed will be “admitted” or gain “permission to stay” or “rejected” after the verification process.