Fewer people seeking asylum in Australia
Thursday Jun 8 19:54 AEST
The number of asylum seekers wanting to come to Australia has fallen dramatically, new figures show.
A report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) reveals the number of asylum requests to Australia fell by 75 per cent between 2000 and 2004 - coinciding with the federal government's crackdown on asylum seekers.
A total of 3,200 people sought asylum in Australia in 2004, the International Migration Outlook annual report found.
New Zealand experienced a 63 per cent drop in asylum requests over the same period, while Britain recorded a 59 per cent drop, Germany 55 per cent, the United States 35 per cent and Canada 25 per cent.
Nations to register increases in asylum requests between 2000 and 2004 include Slovakia, Korea, Sweden, France, Japan, Austria and Poland.
Globally, the number of asylum seekers arriving in OECD countries declined by 20 per cent from 2003 to 2004 and represented a 35 per cent fall on 2000 levels.
The number of illegal immigrants in Australia was "quite low" by world standards at 0.2 per cent of the national population, the report said.
Despite the fall in asylum requests, more foreign nationals are coming to live in Australia and the number of international tertiary students attending Australian institutions continues to soar.
The number of foreign nationals, excluding international students, migrating long-term to Australia rose to 167,300 in 2004 from 150,000 the previous year - an increase of 12 per cent.
Britain recorded a 24 per cent increase in inflows of foreign nationals from 2003 to 2004, while Canada registered a seven per cent increase and New Zealand a 14 per cent decline.
In 2004, 87,049 immigrants became naturalised Australians - a 10 per cent increase on the previous year.
"Switzerland, New Zealand, Australia and Canada are the OECD countries with the highest relative level of long-term legal migration," the report concluded.
The OECD found there were 188,200 international tertiary students in Australia in 2003 - an increase of 72 per cent since 1998.
While many developed countries experienced increases in foreign student numbers, the largest proportional influx was in New Zealand, where numbers increased more than four-fold to 26,400 between 1998 and 2003.
"The recent large increases in the number of international students seem likely to continue in the near future, especially if OECD countries continue to send out signals that international study is a gateway for entry, notably in fields where there are labour shortages," the report said.
More than 47,000 foreign workers were admitted to Australia in 2003 under the skilled temporary resident program, up by almost 4,000 on the previous year.
The OECD noted increased war and unrest had caused greater global migration in recent years.
"Humanitarian migration has become more prevalent over the last 15 years as a result of increased civil and ethnic conflict," the report said.
©AAP 2006
