Society for Threatened Peoples (STP) criticizes Chancellor Angela Merkel’s decision to lift the restrictions on deportations to Afghanistan, which was made on the basis of a new report by the Federal Foreign Office, as “rash” and “unrealistic”. “The report, which was compiled by German diplomats, is much more critical than anything the Foreign Office has published on the situation in Afghanistan so far – only that it avoids a clear recommendation for a ban on deportations. However, there are no statements in the report suggesting that it might be safe to simply send back rejected asylum seekers to Afghanistan,” stated Ulrich Delius, the STP’s director, in Göttingen on Wednesday. Today, Chancellor Merkel informed the German Bundestag that the Federal Cabinet would soon adopt an according decision regarding deportations to Afghanistan.

So far, according to official statements, deportations to Afghanistan were only carried out in the case of offenders or persons who tried to disguise their origin. “However, most of them are not criminals or radical Islamists, but people who have been living in refugee camps in Pakistan for a long time and have never been to Afghanistan before. Many of them are even unfamiliar with the language and the culture of the country. They fled to Europe to escape the mass deportations of Afghan people from Pakistan. It is misleading if they are publicly denoted as criminals or perpetrators,” Delius emphasized.

“The confidential report of the Foreign Office – passages of which had become known to the public – clearly highlights that the security and human rights situation in Afghanistan has deteriorated significantly. The report is completely unfit to justify more deportations. On the contrary, the logical consequence of this report would be to suspend all deportations,” Delius explained.

The STP is especially concerned about the fact that Shiite Hazara are suffering from serious attacks, especially by Islamic State terrorists. “Afghanistan is failing to protect this minority,” Delius said.