BRUSSELS, January 6 (RIA Novosti, Alexander Shishlo) - Belgian immigration authorities granted 3,059 people political asylum in 2005, of which 1,256 (41%) were from Russia, and most of these from the war-torn republic of Chechnya, a senior migration official said Friday.
Dirk Van den Bulck, deputy head of the Belgian commission for refugees, said the number of political refugees from developing countries had risen 30% from 2004.
In total, 15,957 people applied for political asylum to Belgium in 2005, of which 9% were from Russia, 8% from Congo, 8% from Serbia and Montenegro, 6% from Iraq, and 5% from Slovakia.
