Press release
of December, 9th 1998
December, 10th: 50th Anniversary of the Declaration
of the Human Rights
Policy Statement on the EU Presidency
PRO ASYL: Instead of being the brakesman
Germany must become the engine of a humane asylum policy
50th Anniversary of the Declaration of the Human Rights (en)
PRO ASYL: Neue Regierung setzt Politik der Abschottung fort (epd 9.12.1998)
Translation-Info
This is a machine translation by the IBM-supported PERSONAL TRANSLATOR plus. It is slightly edited by combining its results with the translation of SYSTRAN. But you should not rely on it. If you want to use a translated text append or reference the original text.
On occasion of the 50th Anniversary of the Human Rights Declaration and of the policy statement on the German EU Presidency PRO ASYL requests the government coalition in the context of its presidency to oppose every form of erosion of the refugee protection on European level.
„We expect that the new government uses the German presidency to become the engine of a human asylum policy in Europe instead of being the brakesman,“ said PRO ASYL-spokesperson Heiko Kauffmann: „The unrestricted recognition of the Geneva Convention and the European Human Rights Convention must have topmost priority in the refugee protection of Germany and Europe again“. Also are to be observed compellingly the decisions of the Executive Committee of the High Refugee Commissioner of the United Nations according to PRO ASYL. „The aim must be, that all persons in need of protection find protection from persecution in Europe actually“.
Who, like the new government put on record in the coalition contract „to do with all its might into a common European refugee policy, which respects the Geneva Refugee Convention and the European Human Rights“ should decisively oppose to all tendencies questioning the international refugee protection and soften up the protection and human rights standards laid down in international legal instruments.
PRO ASYL draws the attention to the fact, that in France, Great Britain, Norway, Sweden, Denmark and finally in the Netherlands either by court decisions or by new laws of the parliaments has been granted protection pursuant to the Geneva Refugee Convention to victims of persecution by non-State agents. PRO ASYL requests the Federal Government, to follow on national level and at the same time intercede for a European protection which matches the criteria of the Geneva Refugee Convention. In Germany the refugee definition of the Geneva Refugee Convention is today by restrictive constructions inadmissibly and in contrast to the wording and the practice in other countries restricted to persecution by the state itself.
