Refugees in Brazil double to 8.4 thousand in four years
Refugees in Brazil
Over the last four years, the number of refugees in Brazil nearly doubled, surging from 4,218 in 2011 to 8,400 in 2015. The data come from the National Committee for Refugees (Conare), linked with the Justice Minister, and were released Wednesday (Aug. 19). The most common reasons cited in asylum requests are human rights violations (51.13%), political persecution (22.5%), family reunion (22.29%), and religious persecution (3.18%).
According to Conare, Syrians rank first among the nationalities—2,077 people—followed by Angolans (1,480), Colombians (1,093), the Congolese (844), and the Lebanese (389). The study did not survey Haitians, since their requests are submitted for approval to the National Immigration Council as humanitarian action.
Of all refugees, 70.7% are male and 29.3% female. Also, 65.62% are aged between 18 and 39 years old, 19% are 17 or younger, 13.5% are between 40 and 59 years of age, and 1.86% of refugees are 60 or older.
Over 12.6 thousand requests are pending before the committee.
Figures from the Office of United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reveal that, in 2014, 59.4 million people across the world were forced out of their homes due to armed conflicts and persecution based on race, religion, nationality, social status, or political opinion. Of this amount, 19.5 million have taken refuge in other countries.
Translated by Fabrício Ferreira
Fonte: Refugees in Brazil double to 8.4 thousand in four years
