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TOWN HIDES FAMILY IN FIGHT AGAINST DEPORTATION
Christian Gehrke
Spiegel Online
http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,779270,00.html
Aug 10, 2011
Germany
German authorities recently ruled that a family of Armenian asylum
seekers should be deported after 13 years of living in the country.
But they never showed up to the airport. Residents of their town
hid the family for almost two weeks until officials agreed to review
their case.
For almost two weeks, the Baveyan family had been missing. Rumor
had it that residents in the Baltic Sea coast town of Kuhlungsborn,
Germany, were concealing their whereabouts from police and immigration
officials to prevent their deportation, though no one would say more.
Their efforts, along with widespread protest, seem to have paid off --
at least temporarily. The family emerged from hiding on Tuesday after
officials agreed to extend their visas by four weeks pending review
of their case in the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.
"We are happy," mother Kristine Baveyan told regional daily Ostsee
Zeitung. "But it's not over yet."
The small victory came after a state commission narrowly ruled in
February that, after 13 years in Germany, the family of four would
have to be sent back to Armenia. Officials suspect that the family
father, political asylum seeker Artur Baveyan, may have a criminal
background, though they have not revealed any details. Artur, along
with his wife Kristine and their two children, were subsequently
scheduled for deportation this month. But the Baveyans didn't show up.
In the meantime, around 200 of the some 7,000 residents of the town in
the eastern state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania took to the streets
to protest their deportation. The Baveyans are reportedly well-liked
and have many friends in the seaside resort community. Artur owns
a doner kebab shop, while Kristine helps elderly people with their
day-to-day concerns. Both of their children, 12-year-old Geworg and
nine-year-old Anne, were born in Germany and have grown up with the
language and culture. The youngsters receive good grades in school
and are members of local sports clubs.
A group of protesters recently gathered in front of the Baveyans'
doner kebab shop. Holding signs in the sunshine, Geworg's and Anne's
schoolmates and teachers said they didn't want to see the children go.
Members of local football club FSV Kuhlungsborn also turned out to
express their unwillingness to part with youth team forward Geworg.
'The Children Are Traumatized'
Among the crowd were also Artur's work colleagues and pensioner Joachim
Robrahn, who has known the family for six years. Kristine helps him
with his household chores. "This is mainly about the children," he
told SPIEGEL ONLINE. "If they were to be deported now, they would be
foreigners in their own country. One can't just pack a bag and move
away after 13 years."
According to Robrahn, each family member would have been allowed to
carry just 12 kilograms (about 26 pounds) of luggage on their journey
-- forcing them to leave most of their belongings behind.
One young man claiming to have close contact with the family while
they were in hiding said they were fearful of their uncertain future.
"They are afraid each time they hear a siren and are terrified,"
he said. "The children are traumatized and the mother actually needs
psychological treatment."
One of the family's lawyers, Stefan Taschjian, has filed two cases with
the Schwerin administrative court appealing the deportation decision,
local daily Ostsee Zeitung reported earlier in the week.
"I feel terrible for the children," state Interior Minister Lorenz
Caffier told SPIEGEL ONLINE before the family came out of hiding. "But
even I can't change this ruling."
But the controversy gained so much attention in the region that
state Governor Erwin Sellering stepped in. With state municipal and
parliamentary elections coming up in September, he called for the
commission to review the family's case once more.
Kuhlungsborn Mayor Jeane Wohlschlegel agrees with taking such action.
"Here on the Baltic Sea coast we don't have a lot of foreigners," she
said. "But when it comes to deportation, it needs to be decided on a
more individual basis in the future. This is about children who speak
fluent German, get good grades and have a bright future in Germany."
Christian Gehrke
Spiegel Online
http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,779270,00.html
Aug 10, 2011
Germany
German authorities recently ruled that a family of Armenian asylum
seekers should be deported after 13 years of living in the country.
But they never showed up to the airport. Residents of their town
hid the family for almost two weeks until officials agreed to review
their case.
For almost two weeks, the Baveyan family had been missing. Rumor
had it that residents in the Baltic Sea coast town of Kuhlungsborn,
Germany, were concealing their whereabouts from police and immigration
officials to prevent their deportation, though no one would say more.
Their efforts, along with widespread protest, seem to have paid off --
at least temporarily. The family emerged from hiding on Tuesday after
officials agreed to extend their visas by four weeks pending review
of their case in the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.
"We are happy," mother Kristine Baveyan told regional daily Ostsee
Zeitung. "But it's not over yet."
The small victory came after a state commission narrowly ruled in
February that, after 13 years in Germany, the family of four would
have to be sent back to Armenia. Officials suspect that the family
father, political asylum seeker Artur Baveyan, may have a criminal
background, though they have not revealed any details. Artur, along
with his wife Kristine and their two children, were subsequently
scheduled for deportation this month. But the Baveyans didn't show up.
In the meantime, around 200 of the some 7,000 residents of the town in
the eastern state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania took to the streets
to protest their deportation. The Baveyans are reportedly well-liked
and have many friends in the seaside resort community. Artur owns
a doner kebab shop, while Kristine helps elderly people with their
day-to-day concerns. Both of their children, 12-year-old Geworg and
nine-year-old Anne, were born in Germany and have grown up with the
language and culture. The youngsters receive good grades in school
and are members of local sports clubs.
A group of protesters recently gathered in front of the Baveyans'
doner kebab shop. Holding signs in the sunshine, Geworg's and Anne's
schoolmates and teachers said they didn't want to see the children go.
Members of local football club FSV Kuhlungsborn also turned out to
express their unwillingness to part with youth team forward Geworg.
'The Children Are Traumatized'
Among the crowd were also Artur's work colleagues and pensioner Joachim
Robrahn, who has known the family for six years. Kristine helps him
with his household chores. "This is mainly about the children," he
told SPIEGEL ONLINE. "If they were to be deported now, they would be
foreigners in their own country. One can't just pack a bag and move
away after 13 years."
According to Robrahn, each family member would have been allowed to
carry just 12 kilograms (about 26 pounds) of luggage on their journey
-- forcing them to leave most of their belongings behind.
One young man claiming to have close contact with the family while
they were in hiding said they were fearful of their uncertain future.
"They are afraid each time they hear a siren and are terrified,"
he said. "The children are traumatized and the mother actually needs
psychological treatment."
One of the family's lawyers, Stefan Taschjian, has filed two cases with
the Schwerin administrative court appealing the deportation decision,
local daily Ostsee Zeitung reported earlier in the week.
"I feel terrible for the children," state Interior Minister Lorenz
Caffier told SPIEGEL ONLINE before the family came out of hiding. "But
even I can't change this ruling."
But the controversy gained so much attention in the region that
state Governor Erwin Sellering stepped in. With state municipal and
parliamentary elections coming up in September, he called for the
commission to review the family's case once more.
Kuhlungsborn Mayor Jeane Wohlschlegel agrees with taking such action.
"Here on the Baltic Sea coast we don't have a lot of foreigners," she
said. "But when it comes to deportation, it needs to be decided on a
more individual basis in the future. This is about children who speak
fluent German, get good grades and have a bright future in Germany."