Number of asylum seekers drops in 2007

The number of applicants seeking asylum in the Czech Republic dropped last year, the Interior Ministry reported on Friday. Fewer than 2,000 foreigners applied for asylum in the Czech Republic in 2007, the lowest figure since 1995. Over a quarter of these were submitted by nationals from Ukraine and Turkey. Of the applications, 191 were successful: 32 came from Belarus, 31 from Russia, 19 from Ukraine and 17 from Iraq. While the number of asylum seekers from Ukraine has traditionally been high, the number of Turkish applicants rose several times since 2006. Now that the Czech Republic has entered the Schengen area, the number of asylum applications is expected to drop. Unlike Poland or neighbouring Slovakia, the country now only shares borders with other Schengen countries, making it more difficult for foreigners to apply. Anyone seeking asylum must legally do so in the first Schengen country they enter.