São Paulo – Refugees, asylum-seekers and stateless persons arriving in Brazil at the São Paulo International Airport (GRU), in Guarulhos, in São Paulo’s Greater Metropolitan Area, will receive increased assistance while unable to enter the country. Wednesday (28) saw the signing in Brasília of the Technical-Institutional Term of Cooperation, intended to create methods to render quicker, better services to these foreigners.
The agreement was entered into by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (Unhcr), the Attorney’s Office for Human Rights of the Federal Prosecutor’s Office, the National Committee for Refugees (Conare), National Secretariat for Justice, and the Public Defender’s Office of the Federal District. The Guarulhos City Hall is expected to sign the document on February 09.
According to information from the Unhcr’s representative in Brazil, Andrés Ramirez, the country is receiving more and more asylum requests. In 2010, there were approximately 560 applications. Last year there were 9,200.
“Brazil is garnering growing international attention due to its presence overseas, it has hosted major events such as the FIFA World Cup and the FIFA Confederations Cup, and will host the Olympic Games, and its economy is performing well. All these factors help attract asylum applicants,” Ramirez told ANBA. He also remarked that the number of refugees worldwide is at its highest ever; hence, more requests are being made.
Upon arriving in Brazil, many foreigners are held at the airport because their legal status prevents them from being accepted. They are stateless, people who have made no asylum requests and haven’t been admitted into the country. Some may be accepted and some not. On arrival, they stay in an area within the airport known as the “connector.”
Presently, this facility does not provide ideal, comfortable conditions to these foreigners. The food is not adequate, the bathrooms are shared, and it takes a long time to get in touch with local authorities –up to 40 days in some cases. Many are unable to even submit their asylum request, which would allow them a temporary stay in the country while awaiting the approval or disapproval of their application.
“The most important thing is to delegate control over to the Advanced Post for Humanized Services to Migrants, which belongs to the Guarulhos Development and Social Assistance Secretariat. Employees require training in order to conduct first interviews with these foreigners. They must speak Spanish, French and English. This is one way of enabling foreigners to apply for asylum or be deported as soon as possible, because it’s not in their interest to be in this condition,” said to ANBA the federal attorney for Citizen’s Rights, Aurélio Rios.
Ramirez said the agreement is intended to ensure that foreigners enjoy the rights set forth in law. “The law guarantees that people entering via the ‘connector’ have the right to a [asylum application] procedure. This is the right we want to ensure will be upheld”, said Ramirez.
The GRU Airport has been selected for the project because this is where most asylum requesters arrive in Brazil through. Last year, there were 1,000 people. The second airport with the most asylum-seekers is Rio de Janeiro’s Tom Jobim International Airport, with 25% of the amount from Guarulhos. Besides, according to Unhcr data, nearly 50% of applicants last year made their requests in the state of São Paulo.
The amount of people arriving at the ‘connector’ in Guarulhos varies from day to day. Last Monday (26), there were roughly 40 foreigners there. Rios noted, however, that the growing number of asylum requests in Brazil means the number of people awaiting a decision at the airport won’t go anywhere but up.
Refugee scholarships
In another action, the Catholic University of Santos is accepting entries until Friday (30) from refugees interested in applying for a scholarship grant. Three full grants will be offered to refugees with Conare-issued documentation to prove their condition. Applications can be made at the university, at Campus Dom Idílio José Soares (Avenida Conselheiro Nébias, 300), in Santos, on the São Paulo coastline, or by email coord.vest@unisantos.br. For additional information go to www.unisantos.br or call 0800-770-5551.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
