The Eritrea report: Symbolic uses of expert information in asylum politics

This paper discusses the role of country of origin information (COI) in asylum policies by examining the debate about a controversial Danish report on Eritrea that has been used to attempt to legitimise a restrictive turn in Danish asylum policy. Following substantial criticism, Danish authorities changed their policy interpretation of the report and returned to their former practice when dealing with asylum applications made by Eritreans. Nevertheless,the number of Eritrean applications lodged in Denmark has since dropped sharply and the report has influenced other asylum receiving states in Europe. The Eritrea case suggests that COI may function as a potential means of deterrence and that the boundaries between COI and policy goals blur easily, such that the production of knowledge becomes a site of political negotiation.