Influx of refugees incites discussion

Katrina Osborne, Reporter

The refugee crisis in Europe has caused a ton of problems for both refugees and the European Union (EU). Not only has it caused population problems, it has also taken many lives. In the Mediterranean a long boat was believed to be carrying up to 700 refugees, only 28 of those refugees had been rescued.  

The EU is currently trying to figure out a way to solve this crisis. They can’t have all of the refugees in their countries because there isn’t enough room for all of them. Over the past six-months, Europe has experienced an increased flow of migrants and there are currently an approximate 350 thousand refugees housed in Europe. The problem with this is that the first country in the EU a refugee lands in the refugee is granted asylum.  Asylum is the protection granted by a nation to someone who has left their native country as a political refugee. The EU has decided on a new approach. They are sending money to aid more people in the Middle East to feed them and to reduce the chance they will come to Europe

“We need to do more to stabilize the countries and the regions from which these people are coming,’ said British Prime MInister David Cameron. He announced…at the meeting that…Britain will commit 100 million pounds ($152 million) for Syrian Refugee relief.” stated the Huffington Post.

For refugees that are already in the US and are unable or unwilling to go back to their native country for fear of life, one can be granted asylum. After a year of living in the US one can then apply for permanent resident status, according to In the EU, asylum is granted to people fleeing persecution or serious harm in their own country and therefore in need of international protection. “Since 1999, the EU has been working to create a Common European Asylum System (CEAS) and improve the current legislative framework,” stated, the European Commision website.

BBC News said, “Germany continues to be the most popular destination for migrants arriving in in Europe. It has received the highest numbers of new asylum applications, with almost 222,000 by the end of August,”