“We have to put an end to it”: Jans wants to tighten the asylum screw

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The SVP will be happy with this: the new asylum minister Beat Jans (59) announced relaxations for the asylum system during his visit to Ticino. He plans to take tougher measures against criminal asylum seekers across Switzerland, reducing the number of hopeless asylum applications by expanding 24-hour procedures and halting applications on weekends.

“These measures are aimed at asylum seekers from countries of origin with an asylum rate of less than 1 percent,” his department wrote in a statement. “This mainly affects asylum seekers from Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco.” Applications with very little chance of asylum made up approximately a quarter of the more than 24,000 initial applications in 2023.

“We have to put an end to it”

The asylum structures are mainly used at weekends as temporary accommodation by people from these countries of origin. “We have to put an end to this,” Jans said after the meeting with Ticino authorities, with whom he exchanged views during his visit to the federal asylum center in Chiasso. Vulnerable asylum seekers such as unaccompanied women, families, unaccompanied minors and sick or elderly people must remain admitted during the weekend.

Jans also announced that the 24-hour procedures, which have been successfully tested in recent months at the Federal Asylum Center in Zurich, will be introduced in all federal asylum centers with a procedural function by the end of April 2024. Asylum seekers from countries of origin with very little prospect of asylum recognition should also provide written reasons for their asylum application in advance to relieve pressure on the asylum system. The State Secretariat for Migration is currently investigating what legal adjustments are needed to implement this measure.

Scrutinize intensive care offenders

Jan’s intensive perpetrators also want to take tougher action. To this end, federal and cantonal migration authorities, as well as cantonal law enforcement authorities, should cooperate even more closely in the future “to take targeted action against a small number of intensive criminal offenders from the asylum and immigration sectors,” as the communication states.

In many cases, the seriousness of the crime is not sufficient to justify a criminal deprivation of liberty. To deter these people from committing further crimes, all criminal and immigration law measures, including administrative detention, must be “exploited to their full potential”, which is only possible in close coordination with all relevant authorities. To this end, information exchange is improved and round table discussions are organized in all asylum regions with all stakeholders on the theme of safety and case management for intensive offenders. (Russian)

Source:Blick