The number of unaccompanied child migrants arriving in Denmark in the past fours months alone now exceeds the annual totals for the years 2011, 2013, and 2013 respectively.
According to the Danish Broadcasting Corporation (DR), information released by the Immigration section of the Danish Foreign Affairs Department shows the number of unaccompanied child migrants arriving in Denmark “exploded” in 2015, soaring to 2,050. More under-18-year-olds arrived in each of November and December than in the whole of any of 2011, 2012 and 2013, and will bring to mind the case of Sweden’s “grappling hook children” – who, similarly to the “anchor babies” phenomenon in the United States, gain residency rights and then bring their other family members into the country on the basis of “family reunification”.
The Danish government states: “…family reunification will only be granted to other family members if turning down the application would go against Denmark’s international obligations, such as the European Human Rights Convention, article 8, concerning the right to a family life.
Predominantly of Syrian, Afghan and Eritrean origin, preliminary figures for last year show that about 480 child migrants arrived in Denmark in November, and a further 350 in December. In the first week of 2016 a further 80 followed them into the country.
In contrast, 282 child migrants arrived in the whole of 2011, 355 in 2012 and 354 in 2013.
The exponential growth started in 2014 when 818 recorded as entering Denmark. Then, signifying the growing European migrant crisis, somewhere in the region of 2,050 arrived in 2015.
Niels Svankjær Christiansen — the Danish Red Cross consultant with responsibility for unaccompanied child migrants — told DR that the system is only now feeling the severe pressure generated by the numbers of children, saying:
“This is a marked increase in refugee children, that we see in these years. It is often young boys from Syria, Afghanistan and Eritrea. We currently have the largest refugee crisis since World War II, and that so many are unaccompanied clearly has something to do with the conflicts that we see playing out.”
Mr. Christiansen said the “dramatic increase” in numbers demands much of Danish authorities. This is because the infrastructure needed to ensure the children get the security and stability their situation demands is is extensive.
He believes the government is geared up to provide what is needed, although there is still room for improvement. For example, he suggests asylum procedures for child migrants could be faster and more streamlined.
The Danish Minister for Integration, Inger Støjberg, concedes that child migrants put special pressure on the system, particularly as they so often arrive without any identification documents. Nevertheless she says the educational and psychological support they need can be provided by Denmark.
Ms. Støjberg said that most people have a “soft spot” for unaccompanied child migrants. Nevertheless there are risks that accompany them.
As Breitbart London previously reported, the identity of one of the terrorists who attacked the Westgate Mall in Kenya in 2013 remained a mystery for about two years. A Norwegian citizen at the time of his death, Hassan Dhuhulow arrived in Norway aged nine in 1999 with someone claiming to be his sister.
In fact she was no relation to him and the lack of matching DNA meant identifying the terrorist required detailed comparisons of remains recovered in the mall and Dhuhulow’s dental records.
The Danish government has also recently discovered that many people over the age of 18 are applying as child migrants, knowing that their asylum application will be treated more favourably as a result.
Around 80 percent of 2014 child migrant cases were classified as having a stated age between 15-17, but the Danish immigration authorities soon discovered that around 203 of the 282 cases they investigated revealed the applicant to be over the age of 18.
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