A round-up of reports from European media sources on the issue of the influx of Kurds into Europe:

UNHCR official says Kurdish refugee wave could reach Hungary

Text of report by Hungarian radio on 6th January

[Presenter] The head of the UNHCR's Budapest office [Dietlert Norgard, name phonetic] has warned that the current Kurdish refugee wave could reach Hungary. Last year 75 illegal Kurdish immigrants asked for refugee status in Hungary, but they were all refused.

According to current legislation, those arriving from Turkey are considered European refugees, so the Refugee and Migration Office is responsible for them, while the UN's Budapest office deals with those from outside Europe. The Hungarian Refugee Law, which will come into effect on 1st March, states that non-Europeans can also receive refugee status in Hungary. Csilla Kegyes reports:

[Kegyes over recording of Norgard in English] We have not really felt an increasing number of Kurds arriving in Hungary yet, but this refugee wave could also come here, Dietlert Norgard said.

To the question about what to do with the refugees, the official heading the UNHCR's Budapest office replied:

"We shall do what we have been doing so far: we shall simply question them and examine whether refugee status can be given to them. Naturally, this will cause you a great problem, since you will have to provide accommodation and food for the refugees. All this will require a lot of money."

In response to the question whether the UNHCR could continue to help Hungary financially, Dietlert Norgard warned that the High Commission would only intervene financially in deciding the fate of refugees until 1st March, when the Hungarian Refugee Law comes into effect.

After that they will take part in this indirectly and at a different level. They will have to discuss with the Hungarian authorities how to continue cooperation in this matter in the future, Dietlert Norgard said.

Source: Hungarian Radio, Budapest, in Hungarian 1700 gmt 6 Jan 98

Turkish security chief says illegal immigration being tackled

Excerpts from report by Turkish TV on 6th January

[Nermin Tuguslu, interviewer] The security directors of Turkey, Germany, Italy, France, the Netherlands and Austria will meet in Rome on 8th January to discuss the issue of illegal immigration.

Mr Bilican will represent Turkey at the meeting. Mr Bilican, this matter has assumed tragic proportions. Many illegal refugees are being caught almost daily in Istanbul and in our port towns. What is the Security Directorate doing in this regard inside the country?

[Turkish security director-general Necati Bilican] This matter has recently become a major problem. There have always been illegal immigrants. We are constantly following them, right from their entry into the country and in our cities after they enter the territory.

We are adopting measures in this regard. The workers who have been smuggled into Italy in recent days are part of an organized crime network and are involved in illegal labour trade. There is no need to look for other reasons behind this.

This is an organized movement that exploits people's feelings, deceives them and promises them a better future in countries where they can be more prosperous. It takes their money and creates great difficulties for them.

Illegal Kurdish immigrants have raised questions about the open-border policy

Therefore, our friend, Italy, is justifiably concerned over this because Italy is the target country. Two ships have gone to Italy, and a third has been caught as it was attempting to leave for Italy. A total of 264 persons have been caught recently, and, notably, none of them were Turkish. They were all foreigners - from Pakistan, Iran, Bangladesh, Tunisia, Morocco and Algeria.

[Tuguslu] This may be a journey of hope, but there is also the matter of a new strategy on the part of the PKK [Kurdistan Workers' Party].

[Bilican] The PKK is very much involved in this. We have been saying this for years. The PKK tried to achieve something through its separatist armed movement in the region, but realized that this could not be achieved.

When it realized that it could not achieve this inside the country, it launched efforts to garner support abroad. In addition to the narcotics smuggling - which brings it large sums of money and with which it poisons the people of the world, as we have been repeating in every international meeting - the PKK has now found another way.

It is deceiving people, taking their money and forcing them to engage in anti-Turkish propaganda in these countries. These people have been brainwashed. The PKK is telling them: If you slander Turkey and say that injustices have been committed against you, you will be granted political asylum. You will thus be able to live in these countries.

These incidents have revealed the ugly aspect of this movement. We will explain this to our friends during the meeting in Rome on 8th January. The security directors of six countries will attend this meeting. Each country must adopt the necessary measures within their own legal means. The host country that accepts them [the illegal immigrants, presumably] must be very careful. If the host countries make concessions, it will be impossible to prevent this...

Not only are we not encouraging this movement, but we are greatly opposed to it. We have concluded security cooperation agreements with close to 30 countries. These agreements include the struggle against drugs smuggling and organized crime.

We have been reiterating this over and over, and we will raise this in Italy too. We have also signed a security cooperation agreement with Italy, and we are involved in the prevention of organized crime.

We will discuss these issues and state that this is an organized crime consisting solely of human smuggling. Turkey does not approve of this and it is currently taking all the necessary measures to make up for any aspects that have so far gone unnoticed. These are matters that we always follow very carefully...

[Tuguslu] Can we say that, as a result of the mistakes made by certain European countries in the past, the weapon is now turning against them?

[Bilican] In a way, yes. Terrorism will flourish wherever it finds the right climate. There is no exception. Terrorism is a movement based on violence and fear. It will spread wherever it can. We have been telling our friends this from the start.

The organization, especially the separatist PKK, will also become Europe's problem one day. We can now see the examples of this. We must adopt a joint stand against this. We will also discuss this matter at the Rome meeting.

This movement is undertaken by clever people in order to deceive individuals with the aim of making money. There may be countries that attempt to reach a certain conclusion against Turkey. There is also the organization. A television station involved in this organization's propaganda reported on this refugee movement to Italy before it actually took place. In other words, it is evident that the organization is involved in this and has deceived these people.

[Tuguslu] The meeting in Rome will therefore give us an opportunity to explain ourselves clearly to the world. Thank you for coming to the studio.

Source: TRT TV, Ankara, in Turkish 1100 gmt 6 Jan 98

French minister blames Kurdish influx on Iraq's lack of control in north

Text of report by the French news agency AFP

Paris, 6th January: Interior Minister Jean-Pierre Chevenement on Tuesday [6th January] said that the influx of Kurds into Europe could be explained by the fact that Iraq had lost control of the north of its territory since the Gulf war.

"If the north of Iraq had not been transformed into a juridical no-man's-land [last three words in English] open to all blows, to all invasions, to all civil wars, if it had not become a running sore in the region, perhaps there would not be the influx of Kurds we are seeing," Mr Chevenement said as he left a meeting with [Prime Minister] Lionel Jospin at Matignon [prime minister's office].

For Mr Chevenement, who has always been a critic of the sanctions imposed on Iraq since 1991, "it is necessary to treat the causes" of the current problem of the Kurdish exodus. "I feel involved (...) [AFP ellipsis] as a citizen because this Kurdish problem is not happening by accident," he said.

As a minister, he stressed that there is also "the underlying problem and the problem of the intermediary links, the illegal immigration networks". "That must end," he said.

Recalling that a meeting of the directors-general of police from the main countries concerned was to be held in Rome on Thursday, Mr Chevenement said that the director-general of the Turkish police would be taking part. "I think that when a large ship leaves the Turkish coast it should be visible," he said.

Source: AFP news agency, Paris, in French 1224 gmt 6 Jan 98

BBC Monitoring (http://www.monitor.bbc.co.uk), based in Caversham in southern England, selects and translates information from radio, television, press, news agencies and the Internet from 150 countries in more than 70 languages.
 

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