Part one of this series looks at how asylum seekers who have just arrived in Germany are going to be sheltered. According to the new law their stay in the first reception centers is to be prolonged. This decision was subject to harsh criticism by civil society organizations.

The new legal situation

In the early stages of their procedure, asylum seekers are required to stay in so-called first reception centers. Often these are fenced areas with police, doctors, a canteen and dormitories for many people. According to the new law, the time that asylum seekers have to live in these accommodations is to be prolonged from three to six months.

Only after this period will they be distributed to communities throughout the country. In the end, this prolongation cancels the relaxation of regulations on the prohibition to work introduced this summer. As long as asylum seekers stay in the first reception centers they are not allowed to work.

As stated by the federal government, the aim is to speed up the proceedings. This would be made possible by the new regulation since it would be easier for the authorities to contact the asylum seekers in these facilities.

From a human rights perspective

While faster proceedings are important, they are hardly achievable through the measures proposed by the new law, says a coalition of scientists. Furthermore, the new regulations bring up problems regarding fundamental and human rights.

The most urgent problem is certainly the overall shortage of accommodation. This leads to overcrowded or improvised shelters that do not live up to effective basic human rights standards. Now the prolonged stay will expose asylum seekers to these conditions for an even longer period.

Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights Nils Muižnieks has recommended that Germany introduces minimum standards for the whole country about how the reception centers are to be run. According to him, this would be the only way to ensure that the conditions are in line with human rights standards throughout the country. Two examples of why this is important:

• Children have a right to education: This is set down in Article 13 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR). For the accommodations, this means that access to educational activities has to be provided for children, for example schools need to be reachable within a reasonable time otherwise new educational facilities have to be created in the vicinity of the centers.
• Women have a right to protection from gender-based violence: For the accommodations, this means for example that measures have to be in place to protect women from assaults or sexual harassment.

Human rights are Individual Entitlements

Germany has obliged itself to respect and protect fundamental and human rights. If these rights are violated in Germany, the affected persons have a legal claim. Of course, in Germany the Constitution and the Basic Rights are very important in this matter.

Beyond the aforementioned level, there are other human rights obligations that have to be considered in the interpretation of German laws and even the Constitution. These are, for example, the European Convention on Human Rights and other conventions on the level of the United Nations (UN Convention on the rights of the child, ICESCR and so forth).

In all aspects of the asylum law this is going to be important. According to new reports, the German Ministry of the Interior is already planning an amendment of the law in order to weaken the right to asylum even further. The most important question is going to be if and how Germany will uphold its obligations regarding human and fundamental rights.