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Arrival of asylum seekers should be seen as opportunity: ICRC President

Xinhua, April 13, 2016 Adjust font size:

President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Peter Maurer said here on Tuesday that the arrival of asylum seekers in Europe should be seen as an opportunity, but not a burden.

He justified his opinion by the fact that populations in Europe are aging and more labor forces are needed, Finnish News Agency STT reported.

Maurer told STT that there are currently more than 4 million Syrians in Syria's neighboring countries. About 8 million people still live in distress without help inside of the Syrian borders.

"We are trying to find the best ways of doing things and to scale them in a larger scope globally, " Maurer was quoted as saying. He said "perfection is impossible, but a good attempt has already signified a lot."

Maurer pays a visit to Finland on Tuesday. In the morning, he visited the Ruskeasuo reception center in Helsinki, where he was impressed by the fact that the asylum seeking children have access to school.

During the visit, Maurer also met Finnish President Sauli Niinisto, Prime Minister Juha Sipila and Minister for Foreign Affairs Timo Soini. The meetings focused on Finland's humanitarian actions and its support to the Red Cross. Endit