Filenews 16 May 2024 - by Frixos Dalitis
Interior Minister Constantinos Ioannou characterizes ELAM's proposal to grant passports to immigrants as dangerous and unrealistic.
In statements to philenews, asked to comment on ELAM's proposal to give passports of the Republic of Cyprus to migrants in order for them to leave Cyprus for another country, the Interior Minister said that if such a proposal is implemented, Cyprus will become an attractive migration destination. He even indicated how it would be enough for a party to do a simple study of the data to understand how things stand on immigration.
Specifically, Constantinos Ioannou explained that a travel document and not a passport of the Republic of Cyprus, is issued when someone gets political asylum and is entitled to subsidiary protection. It is the so-called "laissez-passer", which is issued on the basis of the European regulation for those who have received the status of subsidiary protection. With this document, he added, holders will have to apply for and obtain a visa in the country they want to travel to, which is only valid for three months. "After three months they must return to the country that issued their travel document, where the obligation to host them remains. So it's not the case that they're going to leave."
Constantinos Ioannou added that those who are not approved to receive political asylum are not entitled to this travel document and are deported. "Passports of the Republic of Cyprus are received only by those who are Cypriot citizens. So we should also give them citizenship. So imagine giving passports to everyone. Cyprus will become a centre for attracting migrants to get passports, without any obligation. And who can guarantee that by getting a passport, they will leave for another country?" he asked.
The Minister of the Interior pointed out once again that the problem of the green line and illegal crossings, mainly from African countries, had been largely tackled and that the flow of deportations of all illegal immigrants had increased. He pointed out that there is still a large number of illegal immigrants in Cyprus and that is why checks for their detection and deportation are being intensified.
