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After resistance: deportation of two men suspended

Two young men were to be deported. They belong to an Afghan family who had been granted church asylum in Schwerin. Their deportation has now been suspended for the time being. However, criticism of the authorities' actions continues.

A special police unit is deployed during a planned deportation from a church building. Photo.aussiedlerbote.de
A special police unit is deployed during a planned deportation from a church building. Photo.aussiedlerbote.de

Ministry of Integration - After resistance: deportation of two men suspended

The planned deportation of two men from a church asylum in Schwerin has been suspended for the time being. A spokesperson for the responsible Schleswig-Holstein Ministry of Integration told the German Press Agency on Thursday. The city of Kiel, as the responsible immigration authority, had withdrawn the so-called administrative assistance request to Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania to repatriate the family. "As the supervisory authority, we are in contact with the immigration authorities and are examining the next steps."

The police in Schwerin used a large contingent and special forces to put an end to resistance to the planned deportation on Wednesday. According to a police spokeswoman, a family of six had barricaded themselves in the apartment of a church congregation early on Wednesday morning when police officers tried to enforce the deportation of two young men aged 18 and 22. Criminal proceedings were initiated against the 47-year-old mother for threats and coercion.

According to the North Church, it was a family of six from Afghanistan whose two adult sons were to be deported. This had been ordered by the immigration authorities in Kiel. Both were reportedly to be taken to Spain, where they had entered the EU. According to the church spokesperson, the family was staying in an apartment on the edge of a prefabricated housing estate in Schwerin, which is provided for refugees by the local parish.

Like the Evangelical Lutheran Northern Church before it, the Catholic Church in the north also criticized the actions of the authorities. "The attempted deportation from a church asylum in Schwerin yesterday, Wednesday, was a matter of great concern to me," said Archbishop Stefan Heße. Church asylum will also be needed in the future to avert humanitarian hardship. It is therefore important that the authorities respect the tradition of church asylum.

The parishes would consult extensively and carry out a conscientious examination before granting church asylum. With church asylum, the churches are not claiming a special right. "Rather, we are committed to the principles of the rule of law," emphasized the Archbishop of Hamburg, who is also responsible for Mecklenburg.

As the special representative for refugee issues of the German Bishops' Conference, he himself visited St. Peter's Parish in Schwerin in June together with EKD refugee bishop Christian Stäblein. "I was very impressed by the great commitment to the concerns of people seeking protection in the parish," emphasized Heße.

Police press release Police follow-up press release

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Source: www.stern.de

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