COPENHAGEN, Sept 29 (AFP) - Denmark and Iraq agreed on Wednesday that Iraqi refugees who had been refused political asylum would not be forcibly returned to their country of origin in the light of the current situation there.
About 20,000 Iraqis have been granted asylum in Denmark but another 601 face expulsion and 501 of these are refusing to leave voluntarily in spite of financial inducements to do so.
The two countries have undertaken to facilitate the voluntary return of those who do wish to go home, according to a statement issued after a meeting between Danish Immigration Minister Bertel Haarder and Iraqi Minister for Migration and Displacement Sorya Y. Isho.
The two ministers highlighted the need for support to be provided to communities in Iraq that took back refugees to help with their reinsertion into local life.
But Isho, while recognising that Denmark "had, in principle, the right from a legal point of view, to repatriate refugees whose asylum requests had been refused" urged the country to "show patience".
"Everyone must understand the problems we have," she told the daily newspaper Politiken on Wednesday. "The lack of security and our poor economy mean we are not ready to accept returning refugees."
Since the formal end of the Iraq war in May 2003, the Danish government has been offering Iraqis an inducement of 18,000 Danish kroner (2,983 dollars, 2,419 euros) per adult and 6,000 kroner (995 dollars, 807 euros) to go home, plus the cost of transport. Since summer 2003, just 540 have taken up the offer.
The Danish government is under pressure from its sole parliamentary ally, the far-right Danish People's Party (PDD), which is encouraging all Iraqi refugees, including those granted asylum, to go home and help rebuild their country.