Prague, Oct 22 (CTK) – The Czech government will discuss the possible transport of 152 Christian refugees, persecuted by Islamic State militants, from Iraq to the Czech Republic, Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka told the parliament Thursday, answering a question by MP Jitka Chalankova (opposition TOP 09).
Sobotka (Social Democrats, CSSD) said his government would take a position on the transport irrespective of whether these refugees could be included in the quota set for the Czech Republic.
“Apart from the aspect of the quotas, we must consider the aspect of humanity, the aspect of solidarity, the aspect of the the particular threat to these people who particularly addressed the Czech Republic,” Sobotka said.
A Czech nongovernmental organisation, the Generace 21 foundation, wants to bring the Christian refugees from Iraq. It is ready to cover the transfer costs and the first year of their stay in the country.
Generace 21 handed the list of applicants to the Government Office and the Interior Ministry some time ago. Once the project is approved, the transfer of the applicants can start, the NGO said previously.
Sobotka said the Interior Ministry was taking steps to clarify the status of the refugees if they were offered to move in the Czech Republic.
Prague asked the European Commission and the United Nations Human Rights Council to give their position on the refugees’ status, he said.
When the status is confirmed, the respective ministers will submit the issue to the government, Sobotka said.
According to the NGO, the applicants for resettlement are whole families or widows with children. Most of them are young people ready to settle, study and work in the Czech Republic, half of the men are university graduates or have higher education and the life stories of all the applicants are known, the NGO stated.
Sobotka said the NGO’s application was very urgent.
