Amnesty, rights group make case for Afghan refugees  

 

BERLIN – The London-based human rights group Amnesty International on Thursday called on Germany to keep accepting refugees from Afghanistan, amid concerns the government initiative leading the effort could be terminated on financial grounds.

“The Afghanistan reception programme for Afghans in extreme danger was a glimmer of hope,” said Theresa Bergmann, a spokeswoman for the organization’s German branch.

“If it is up to Interior Minister Nancy Faeser, the programme will not be funded from next year. That is shameful,” she added.

Some 3,100 Afghans whose applications via the initiative have been accepted will be taken in, but its future is unclear.

German Human Rights Commissioner Luise Amtsberg described the initiative as an “important instrument” for protecting Afghans, adding that it was “essential” to continue it given the difficult situation in Afghanistan.

Amnesty has reported ongoing violations of human rights and crimes under international law in Afghanistan since the Taliban returned to power in 2021, with women and girls particularly affected.

Activists and journalists have faced arrest, torture and disappearance, with many people forced to flee the country. Many refugees are stuck in Iran, Pakistan and Turkey, where they face legal and financial problems along with the possibility of being deported to Afghanistan, Amnesty said.

Aid organizations have called for Germany’s programme for taking in refugees from Afghanistan to continue to operate and to be expanded.

The Berlin-based Zentrum Überleben (Survival Centre) organization issued a statement signed by more than 50 organizations calling for Afghan human rights activists not to be left to their fate.

“Three years after the takeover by the Taliban, people in Afghanistan who have worked for democracy and human rights there are in greater danger than ever,” it said.

The German reception programme has thus far allowed people in extreme danger in Afghanistan following the Taliban takeover in August 2021 to enter Germany, but its future is uncertain.

While there is agreement within the coalition government that the approximately 3,100 people who have secured approval will be allowed in, future admissions depend on the financial situation.

A number of coalition politicians have recently expressed reservations about the programme, as Afghanistan is one of the main countries of origin of irregular asylum-seekers entering Germany.

The Zentrum Überleben statement highlighted dangers facing women, girls and homosexuals in Afghanistan. It calls for approval to be accelerated and for rules on family reunification to be eased, along with an expansion of reception facilities.

Deportations to Afghanistan should be banned, it said. The centre supports rehabilitation and integration of refugees and migrants.