kyrgyz

Kyrgyzstan’s asylum system further eroded as five Uzbeks disappear, warns UN agency

The United Nations refugee agency said today it was gravely concerned over the fate of five Uzbek asylum-seekers who have “disappeared” in recent weeks from southern Kyrgyzstan, warning this latest incident shows an erosion of the Kyrgyz asylum system as it follows the expulsion earlier this month of several Uzbeks back to their homeland.

UN agency fears for the safety of Uzbek refugees after Kyrgyzstan sends them back

Expressing shock at Kyrgyzstan’s extradition of four Uzbek refugees and one asylum seeker back to Uzbekistan, the United Nations refugee agency said today it feared for their safety, stressed that the forced return violated the 1951 Refugee Convention and called on the Uzbek authorities to grant humanitarian access to the deportees.