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5. Near East and South Asia

The Near East/South Asia region has the largest concentration of refugees and displaced persons in the world: five million Afghans, four million Palestinians, and smaller numbers of other nationalities. There are an estimated three million Afghan refugees in Pakistan and two million in Iran, several hundred thousand Iranians in neighboring Turkey, and an estimated 30,000 Iraqis who entered Turkey in 1988. As noted above, the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait and its aftermath have sharply increased the numbers of refugees and displaced persons in the region in 1991.

Voluntary Repatriation. Most refugees from the Near East would like to return to their homeland. The protracted fighting in Afghanistan after the Soviet withdrawal has inhibited the return of significant numbers of Afghan refugees. However, recent indications that the major parties to the conflict are intensifying their search for a political settlement offers hope that preconditions for voluntary

return can be created.

The response of the international community to the difficult situation of Iraqis who fled to Turkey, Iran, and other neighboring countries at the end of the war has been positive. Ongoing efforts are being made to secure the home areas of these people so that they can return safely. We do not believe that third-country resettlement is the durable solution for this group. Once the situation in the area has stabilized, the United States -- in consultation with UNHCR and other governments -- will consider whether an international resettlement effort is needed for those who cannot remain in the region.

Resettlement in the Region. Few countries within the region are willing to offer permanent resettlement to refugees from neighboring countries, but many have been generous with long-term asylum. Pakistan and Iran have offered asylum to over five million Afghans who are permitted to engage in many economic activities and are not restricted to their camps. Several countries in the Near East have extended work permits to Palestinian, Iranian, and Afghan refugees for long periods of time. Iranians appear to have the most difficulty in obtaining resident status in countries of first asylum or other countries in the region. Iraqi Kurds in Turkey are permitted to remain without threat of deportation. However, many live under difficult conditions and are unable to obtain permanent residence. Palestinian support for Saddam Hussein during the Gulf war has led Kuwait and the other Gulf Coalition Countries (GCC) to reexamine their policies on Palestinian guest workers.

Third Country Resettlement. While third country resettlement is not the preferred solution in most cases, it is the only option for certain refugees at risk in countries of first asylum. For example, UNHCR considers third country resettlement to be the preferred solution for most Iranian refugees in Turkey and Pakistan. From FY 1980 to FY 1990, nearly 68,000 refugees from the Near East/South Asia, mostly Iranians and Afghans, were resettled in the United States. Other major resettlement countries for refugees from this region are Australia, Canada, the Federal Republic of Germany, France, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Turkey has accepted refugees from the Turkic ethnic groups in Afghanistan and Bulgaria. Additionally, many other refugees reside in Western

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U.S. Admissions

Proposed FY 1992 Ceiling. The proposed ceiling for FY 1992 for refugees from the Near East and South Asia is 6,000.

This is the same as the level authorized for FY 1991. Iranians, particularly religious minorities, have continued to constitute the largest number of admissions from the region but are now closely followed by Afghans. A growing number of Iraqis fleeing the after-effects of the Gulf War have applied in recent months but most have yet to be adjudicated by INS. While a significant increase in non-Kurdish Iraqi admissions (possibly 1,000 persons) is anticipated in FY 1991 (FY 1990's total was 67), we do not believe a large-scale U.S. resettlement program is the best solution for the recent massive outflow of persons from Iraq. In order to focus our resources on those persons of greatest concern to the United States - those with close relatives in this country - we are expanding processing priorities for Iraqis to include priority five. At the same time, however, we are returning the definition of priority four to the worldwide definition for all countries but Iran and Cuba. Iraqi religious minorities with the requisite family ties will qualify for interview.

The difficult situation of Iraqi Kurds in first asylum in Turkey since 1988, has been recognized by the international community. In January, the United States initiated a program to process for resettlement up to 3,000 individuals, most of whom have U.S. connections. The Gulf War caused the suspension of their processing but processing has now been resumed. We expect some 300 of this group to arrive before the end of September 1991. The balance will require FY 1992 admission numbers.

Although applications from Afghans have continued to be numerous, INS is finding fewer applicants who qualify as refugees. Consequently, in order to bring this program to a conclusion, as of April 12, 1991, the United States only accepts applications from Afghans who fall within priority one. All applications submitted to the U.S. program as of April 12 will be processed to conclusion. We expect that the Afghan admissions program will continue for at least two years because there are some 4,725 Afghan applicants awaiting interview.

In addition to the 3,000 Iraqi Kurds in Turkey the United States is planning to process, in the next few months, some 7,280 Near Eastern applicants who await INS interview. Afghans, Iraqis and Iranians (largely religious minorities) are, in descending order of magnitude, the significant nationality groups applying for admission. Given information currently available, including application and approval rates, we believe the 6,000 numbers requested for FY 1992 should be sufficient to cover these needs.

Designated Nationalities. As in FY 1991, designated nationalities for FY 1992 will be Iranians, Afghans and Iraqis. On a case-by-case basis, nationals of other countries will continue to be processed with prior approval from Washington.

Processing Priorities. FY 1992 processing priorities for the region are: Iraq, priorities one through five; Iran, one through four, including the expanded definition of priority four; and Afghanistan, priority one only. In special circumstances, adjustment in processing priorities will continue to be possible.

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6. The Soviet Union

An important aspect of Soviet foreign and domestic policy over the past two years has been the continued rise in authorized emigration. In May 1991, the Soviet Union passed a new emigration law liberalizing Soviet emigration regulations. Although the law will not be fully implemented until 1993, even the interim implementation measures represent a significant liberalization of Soviet emigration policy. The United States has devoted considerable effort, and a large portion of its refugee admissions budget to support resettlement of those allowed to leave.

To institute effective management control of Soviet emigration to the United States, as of October 1, 1989 all Soviet applicants were required to apply for U.S. admission while still in the Soviet Union.

In FY 1992, Moscow will continue to be the locus of processing of Soviet refugees. In an effort to minimize the impact on the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, much of the pre- and post- adjudication processing is handled at the Washington Processing Center (WPC). This facility lends a high degree of efficiency to a program which handles hundreds of thousands of applications, telephone calls and written inquiries and would be impossible to duplicate inside the Soviet Union. In addition, the computerized processing of applications allows INS officers to interview, in priority order, those applicants who are members of groups at risk and of particular concern to the United States. Since its opening, the WPC has received applications representing over 600,000 individuals, approximately one third of whom fall within the priority group identified by the Lautenberg legislation, who also have close family ties in the United States and, therefore, receive priority for scheduling of interviews. In FY 1991 alone, over 77,000 persons were scheduled for interviews.

In FY 1991 the Moscow Migrant Processing Center began operation to handle much of the post adjudication processing such as scheduling medical examinations and travel for approved refugees. Medical exams are now done at one designated hospital, improving the quality control of medicals for Soviet refugees.

The FY 1991 ceiling for Soviet refugees is 50,000. Arrivals have been lower than anticipated in the first part of FY 1991, totalling 33,000 through August. The lower arrivals are largely due to the fact that many refugees have had difficulty obtaining Soviet exit permission because they could not produce a letter from a first degree relative in the United States. The interim implementation measures of the new Soviet emigration law should simplify the process for most departing refugees. It is still too soon to tell whether the new measures will significantly affect FY 1991 admissions. Although Soviet admissions may fall some 10,000-12,000 short due to the problems refugees encounter in receiving Soviet exit permission, well over 50,000 Soviet refugee applicants have been approved for refugee status in the United States.

In order to address the additional resettlement need for Soviets in FY 1992 created by the FY 1991 admissions shortfall and the concomitant backlog which has

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These numbers will be used by groups such as Soviet Jews, Evangelical Christians, Ukrainian religious activists, as well as other individuals of concern - particularly refuseniks. The vast majority of Soviet refugees admitted to the United States now have ties to this country.

We are closely monitoring recent and on going changes in the Soviet Union and the Baltic States. Over the course of the year, in consultation with Congress, we will work to adapt our policy if the new circumstances warrant.

Third Country Resettlement. Between FY 1975 and FY 1990 over 220,000 refugees from the Soviet Union resettled in the United States. The other major resettlement countries for Soviet refugees are Greece, Australia, Canada, Israel, and Western European countries - particularly the Federal Republic of Germany.

U.S. Admissions

Proposed Ceiling. The proposed ceiling for refugees from the Soviet Union is

63,000.

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7. Unallocated Reserve

An unallocated reserve of 1,000 is proposed, which the President, in consultation with the Congress, would allocate to the most needy regions during

the course of FY 1992.

8. Private Sector Initiative (PSI)

The PSI is a joint private and public venture in which the basic costs of admitting and resettling refugees are paid for by the private sector.

The program was first approved in June 1988 with a project for the admission of Cuban refugees from third countries proposed by the Cuban American National Foundation. The Cuban program was renewed for FY 1989, 1990, and 1991. About 730 privately funded refugees were admitted in 1988, 1,500 in 1989, and 3,000 in 1990. For FY 1991, the Foundation proposed that some of the PSI admissions to be admitted receive Federal assistance for part of the cost of their health care. Plans call for the foundation to resettle 1,000 privately funded refugees, plus an additional 1,000 refugees who would have normally been publicly funded, in return for federal coverage of part of their health care cost. HHS recently approved this proposal.

Since the program began, three other smaller privately funded sponsorship projects have been approved: for Iranian refugees from the Zoroastrian Association of North America, for Vietnamese refugees from the Vietnamese Resettlement Association, and for Ethiopian refugees from the Ethiopian Community Development Council. Additional proposals for admitting refugees from the Near East and other regions are under consideration.