Coburg Chronicles 7

It was a bright day. For once the sun was shining on our faces. There was no rain and the wind was not too cold. A good day for an outing. As planned we started to set out for our day's venture to visit some refugees who were staying in Coburg. The moment the word refugee is pronounced my ears go up almost automatically like an Alsatian. Obviously I was in that team.

The first stop was at the residence for refugees as they called it. It was a building that had individual rooms and some apartments. In the individual rooms the single men were housed and in the apartments there were families. There was also a dormitory where young people stayed while they were in transit or waiting for a decision on their status.

Interacting with them two sets of stories emerged. One, the migrants and the other on the refugees. It was really important to understand the difference. In the case of Europe they only consider political refugees. Another point to note is that, if a person is claiming asylum in Europe, he/she must claim it in the first country of entry into Europe. They cant claim it in a place like Germany as it is surrounded by other european countries. One has to get though one of the European countries to get to Germany. So the claim for asylum in Germany is almost out of question. This doesnt stop people from claiming asylum.

The case of afghans was particularly interesting. They traveled from Kabul to Germany via all the countries in between and were either enroute to the scandinavian countries or wanted to settle in any country where they had their families and friends. This journey is undertaken by young men and women who are ably assisted by agents. They pay huge sums of money to make their way out of their countries. When they reach countries like Germany the hard reality hits them. They are termed as illegal migrants who are not supposed to be here without documents. Seen with suspicion and anger they are usually met with contempt. They are most likely to be deported to their own country or a country that they entered in the very first place. The agents cant help them any more and they cant tell anyone how they got to Germany.

But, while in germany they are housed and taken care of. Thanks to the efforts of community volunteers like Ms Dood who tirelessly campaigns for a the rights of these people. She has played an extraordinary role in trying to secure rights of those who live in the margins. A campaign she organized drew the attention of the Bavarian Parliament to address the issue of the housing. Though they started with the painting of the exterior and then the interiors, it is work in progress.

The Afghans told their moving stories. It made me think, is so much risk really worth it at a huge cost? I am really not sure about that.

The visit also exposed us to the situation of the others like the Ethiopians, Chechenyans and those from Azerbaijan.

There was a family consisting of three members from Azerbaijan, they were housed in two bedroom apartment. Summarily they were suddenly joined by two ethiopian young women. They had to give away a room to them. They share the hall kitchen and toilet. This does not sound okay even to a South Asian. Where we have large joint families sharing rooms and toilets.

Despite these living conditions, they get their rations and about 120 euros a month for living expenses. In the first year they are not allowed to join for language classes but are however taught bu community volunteers. This makes integration very hard for them. For children, it is better because they can have access to schools and other facilities.

While they live here, they have all filed for asylum and have to wait for the entire process to be completed. It starts with getting an interview date. This may take even two years. After the interview the decision is not made immediately, it may take another year or so to hear about the status. In most cases till now it has been negative. But people wait in hope.

In one case that we encountered, there seems to be a positive outcome. Going by the genuineness of the case, despite all the laws of fortress europe there seems to be a possibility to stay and get asylum.