For a humane refugee policy, solidarity with the hunger-strikers
Regarding the hunger strike of ten Iranian refugees, the members of the Party Executive Committee of DIE LINKE, Ali Al Dailami and Christine Buchholz, declare:
Ten Iranian refugees are on hunger strike to demonstrate against the inhumane dealing with refugees in Würzburg since more than two weeks. Notably the federal state Bavaria is known for its strict handling of refugees. Although economically and integrationwise measureably more reasonable, the federal state government still refuses to house the refugees decentrally instead of collecting them in assembly camps. The effects those camps can have on the often traumatized refugees were demonstrated recently when one Iranian camp resident committed suicide.
In those camps applicants for asylum are not only damned to idleness for years but receive only pocket money, being just a fraction of what welfare recipients of HARTZ IV can get and are paid off with so called commodity donations. Due to the obligation to stay in the camp 120.000 asylum applicants can not assume their rights to free movement and residence that are guaranteed in the Basic Law. To the contrary, violations against the residential obligation entail prosecution, and often lead to imprisonment and deportation of the refugees.
DIE LINKE sympathizes with the hunger strikers and declares her solidarity. We claim a radical change of the dealing with refugees. Assembly camps have to be closed as soon as possible, applications for asylum must be accelerated and deportations have to be forbidden.
Germany should not apply anymore a "policy of deterrence" as regards refugees and asylum seekers because this contradicts human dignity.