Refugee children in asylum limbo

Right now, 75 youths and children who have fled to Denmark are waiting for their asylum cases to begin. They lack a so-called personal representative to support and help them with their case and in their free time. Unaccompanied minors must have a personal representative before the authorities begin considering an asylum case.

The personal representatives are drawn from volunteers, and they are essential to the process, says project manager in the Danish Red Cross' asylum department, Karen-Inger Thorsen.

- The administrative procedure cannot begin until you have a representative. The representatives look after the interests and well-being of the minor, they are apart of the entire procedure. The minor will be interviewed by both the Danish Immigration Service and the Police, and the representative ensures that the minor is heard and understood, she says.

Marked increase in unaccompanied minors
The Danish Red Cross cannot keep up because there has been an explosive increase in the numbers of unaccompanied minors who seek asylum in Denmark. Last year, 529 unaccompanied minors sought asylum in Denmark. In 2007, that number was 93.

That corresponds to an increase of more than 500 percent, and the Red Cross is therefore seeking volunteer representatives across Denmark.

Translated by Martin Lamberth, Statsbiblioteket