The US Committee For Refugees has released the 45th annual edition of its World Refugee Survey, which documents internationally the state of refugee protection and human rights. According to the survey, 13 million refugees were caught in "no man's land" during 2002, unable to travel freely or return home. The survey includes articles by UN High Commissioner For Refugees Ruud Lubbers and US Senator Sam Brownback, chair of the Senate Subcommittee on East Asian and Pacific Affairs, contributing with a piece titled "Mercy in Short Supply - The Plight of North Korean Refugees in China." The survey can be accessed online at http://www.refugees.org.

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An Iranian man who sewed up his lips, eyes and ears to protest Britain’s treatment of asylum seekers has been granted refugee status and was allowed to stay in the country, government spokesmen said. Abbas Amini, a poet, stitched his mouth shut and went on an eight-day hunger strike. Amini, who lives in a rented house he shares with other asylum seekers, said the government owed an apology to all asylum seekers for the way they have been treated. The Home Office was prepared to appeal a decision granting his asylum, but found Wednesday that it had no grounds for an appeal. “That means he gets to stay,” a Home Office spokesman said.

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Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharazzi denied US accusations that his country was harboring al Qaeda operatives, suspected of playing a role in the May 12 suicide blasts in Riyadh. Kharazzi said the suspects were in Iranian custody at the time and could not have directed the attack. US Secretary of Defense Don Rumsfeld said it was “a fact” that senior al Qaeda members were being harbored in Iran. US State Department officials said Iran need to “meet their international responsibilities” and hand over the terrorist suspects. Officials did not identify the suspect’s countries of origin.

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The government of Thailand said it was planning to launch a nationwide crackdown against employers hiring illegal aliens. Deputy Prime Minister Korn Dabbaransi, who chairs the alien labor policy committee, said the government would bring charges against entrepreneurs using illegal workers under the anti-money laundering law.

“From now on, there should be no need for us to catch illegal alien labor,

but we will take serious action against employers,” he said.

Dabbaransi said the government planned to reduce the number of occupations open to aliens, and that only Thai citizens would be permitted to work as karaoke bar staff, waiters and beauty assistants.

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According to an immigration report released by Japan’s Justice Ministry, the country deported 41,935 illegal aliens last year, up 2.9 percent from the previous year, with nearly 80 percent of them found to be working illegally. Those removed were subject to deportation for violations to the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act.

Tokyo had the largest number of illegal workers at 10,962. South Koreans topped the list of foreigners who were forced to leave, at 9,656, followed by China, the Philippines, Thailand and Brazil.