91
votes
Why do Muslim refugees seek asylum in Europe and not in rich countries in the Middle East?
The premise in your question, about Muslims preferring Europe over rich Middle-Eastern countries, is false. In fact, Syrian refugees prefer neighbouring Middle-Eastern countries over rich ones.
...
- 679
51
votes
Why do Muslim refugees seek asylum in Europe and not in rich countries in the Middle East?
Implicit in your question is the assumption that Muslims should have some kind of kindred sympathy toward their Muslim brethren in other countries. We have to dispense with that kind of thinking; it'...
- 12k
32
votes
Accepted
What are the consequences for a developed nation to not accept any refugees?
An important factor here is the treaties a country has signed up to. In this case, a relevant one is the 1951 Refugee Convention. From UNHCR:
The 1951 Refugee Convention is the key legal document ...
JJJ♦
- 38.9k
29
votes
Accepted
What are the Realpolitik benefits in taking in refugees from the perspective of Europe?
First let's take a look at the definition of the word Realpolitik:
Politics based on practical and material factors rather than on theoretical or ethical objectives
Under that definition there are ...
- 52.7k
29
votes
Why do Muslim refugees seek asylum in Europe and not in rich countries in the Middle East?
There were apparently no laws for asylum seekers in any Gulf countries until autumn 2018.
Qatar: Gulf’s First Refugee Asylum Law [...]
Qatar passed Law No. 11/2018 on Organizing Political Asylum on ...
- 145k
27
votes
Accepted
Why has Turkey "opened the floodgates" for migrants to the EU?
It's probably part of the pressure/negotiation tactics of Ankara, as they have a long history of threatening Europe with this:
Turkish government representatives, and even President Recep Tayyip ...
- 145k
25
votes
Can a nation just deny refugees to enter into their nation?
The key convention is the 1951 refugee convention.
The key points to this instrument is that refugees should not be returned to a country where they are under threat. Technically a person only ...
- 115k
23
votes
What are the consequences for a developed nation to not accept any refugees?
Really the compulsion is a moral and practical one, rather than something enforced by international law: refugees tend to arrive in large numbers, turning them away is both difficult and tends to get ...
- 22k
19
votes
Is the requirement to accept refugees unconditional in international law, even in the case of a forced population transfer?
The obligation under international law that Israel seems to be referring to is that of non-refoulement. In other words, a receiving country cannot force displaced persons to leave. The Wikipedia ...
- 14.8k
18
votes
Why do Muslim refugees seek asylum in Europe and not in rich countries in the Middle East?
There are several rich "Muslim" states in Middle East: Kuwait, Qatar, UAE, Bahrain and so on. It seems that none of them want to receive Syrian, Iraqi, North African and other Muslim refugees.
...
- 181
18
votes
How long will the war in Ukraine have to last for Ukrainian refugees to become permanent residents?
if the war were to last for 20 years, the majority of refugees should
be able to obtain citizenship and would not have to return to Ukraine.
Is there an estimate of how long it would take for most ...
- 73.2k
17
votes
Why did Eastern EU members embrace refugees from Ukraine but not refugees from other nations?
Three answers, which apply to different degrees in different countries:
Many people in these countries feel also threatened by Russia. Their reaction is not to appease Russia but to confront it, and ...
- 106k
16
votes
Why don't EU countries use language tests to help select/educate refugees?
The primary reason why countries take refugees in the first place are humanitarian concerns. The EU Charter of Fundamental Human Rights Articles 18 and 19 say:
Article 18
The right to asylum shall be ...
- 74.8k
15
votes
Accepted
How does the opposition to quotas for refugees policies from certain EU countries coexist with the EU "free movement of people inside EU" policies?
”Free movement” in the EU primarily applies inside the EU, i.e. it regulates relationships between EU countries. Regarding the free movement of people, it means that it applies to EU citizens ...
- 30.5k
15
votes
How did Angela Merkel's refugee stance change so drastically?
First, note that Germany usually has coalition governments. Whatever her personal convictions, Chancellor Merkel had to balance her own policies with those of her own party and her coalition partners. ...
- 106k
14
votes
In what context did Tony Benn say the following?
He didn't. Although this quote is often misattributed to Benn, including recently in the House of Commons itself by Bell Ribeiro-Addy MP (Hansard), the quote actually comes from the Scottish ...
CDJB♦
- 105k
13
votes
Accepted
Is there anything which legally stops any EU country like Estonia from suddenly accepting an influx of refugees?
No, there are no limits, simple as that.
Countries typically don't want more refugees than they absolutely have to accept (and, in spite of what you might have heard, that very much include Germany) ...
- 30.5k
13
votes
Why did Eastern EU members embrace refugees from Ukraine but not refugees from other nations?
Culture.
I am from the Netherlands, and here we are much more open towards Ukrainian refugees than African/Middle Eastern refugees. The given reasons by most people are:
They are actually women and ...
- 2,079
12
votes
Why do refugees come to Japan?
There are many refugees stuck in camps inside their own country or somewhere close but if you can escape that fate, developing countries have never been very attractive. Going there really only makes ...
- 30.5k
12
votes
How long will the war in Ukraine have to last for Ukrainian refugees to become permanent residents?
The EU activated special rules for Ukrainian refugees, the Temporary Protection Directive. I consider it extremely likely that measures after the end of those special rules will be other special rules,...
- 106k
12
votes
Why are refugees from Syria more 'wanted' than refugees from Gaza?
There are already plenty of Palestinian refugees in Arab countries, notably in Lebanon, Syria, Jordan - see Palestinian refugee camps:
Camps are set up by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (...
- 12k
11
votes
Accepted
How is Germany going to integrate the refugees?
Hopefully the analysis I have found is current. Quite possibly, they will be or will have already implemented new measures for dealing with integration.
German integration following a 2005 law uses a ...
- 471
11
votes
What are the Realpolitik benefits in taking in refugees from the perspective of Europe?
TL;DR: Europe is a) merely being pragmatic about the situation and b) acting in its long-term self-interest.
First off, keep the numbers in perspective. However massive the recent influx of migrants ...
- 30.5k
11
votes
What are the Realpolitik benefits in taking in refugees from the perspective of Europe?
The right to asylum is an inherently moral issue, and removing that aspect of it is nonsensical.
But as that is your question: Ignoring the countless moral arguments, there are a couple of ...
- 36k
11
votes
What is the difference between war refugees and deserters?
The difference is where you are. There is no contradiction.
In the country you are fleeing from, you are a deserter. In the country you are fleeing to, you are an asylum seeker.
The same is true for ...
- 4,460
11
votes
How did Angela Merkel's refugee stance change so drastically?
As one of the most-dicussed topics in German politics, there cannot be one opinion about what happened in 2015/2016 and why refugee politics changed. But one thing every one would agree on: the change ...
- 5,985
10
votes
Why do Muslim refugees seek asylum in Europe and not in rich countries in the Middle East?
There is a vast difference in the immigrant and refugee acceptance in those two parts of the world. It has both cultural and economical grounds.
EU and friends (Turkey included, edit: to lesser ...
- 5,668
10
votes
Accepted
Why does Canada only accept refugee applications from Afghans applying from Afghanistan, thus requiring them to return to the country?
To quote from your question [bold emphasis mine]:
The Canadian government have started processing the refugee applications for Afghanistan whose lives are being endangered by the increasing advances ...
- 4,288
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible