Second court hearing against Ahmed Sameer violation of the Obligatory Residence Law or Residenzpflicht

Palestinian refugee does not accept restriction of movement in Germany

The second court hearing against Ahmed Sameer on the three counts of being in violation of the Obligatory Residence Law or Residenzpflicht and his protest against “Residenzpflicht” will be held in the
Landesgericht Erfurt, Domplatz 37, Room 1.12, at 1pm, on the Wednesday, the 8th of December, 2004. In his first hearing he was sentenced to a fine of 150 euros or 50 days in prison. Since Ahmed considers the law to be unjust, he has decided to not pay even one cent to the authorities for his freedom of movement. After Ahmed’s appeal, the case has now been taken to the Landesgericht in Erfurt.

Ahmed Sameer, member of The VOICE Refugee Forum, protests against the German Obligatory Residency Law, also known as Residenzpflicht, which restricts the movement of asylum seekers to their Landkreis (municipals) pending previous permission by state authorities and which is in complete violation of the most minimum human rights standards.

Why Ahmed Sameer fights against this law:

“When I sought asylum here in Germany, I never expected to be subjected to conditions similar to what I fled from in Palestine. The residence law does not only dehumanise and criminalize me, but goes to great length to prevent me from informing the German society about the current situation in the Occupied Territories of West Bank and Gaza Strip as well as to engage in my political activities for the rights of refugees and migrants in exile.

My fight against this law must simply be understood as a fight of solidarity and to express my conviction for human dignity. I will not compromise my natural and constitutional right to freedom of movement, association and expression. I will use every peaceful means possible to express my convictions against the Residenzpflicht and for its abolition in Germany. Even if the consequence of my protest against this law is that I must go to prison, I am not prepared to pay any fine that can only be seen as an instrument for the criminalization and repression of refugees.”

Since 1982, Germany is the only country in Europe were refugees are criminalized by the law of the Residenzpflicht. The Obligatory Residency Law keeps refugees from seeing their doctors, their lawyers, their friends and relatives and for some of them worst of all from continuing their activities which made them flee their country. When German politicians are in uproar about how foreigners are not willing to integrate into the society, such an absurd and inhumane law and the discussion surrounding integration can only be seen as cruel and cynical.

Some representatives of self-organised groups like The VOICE Refugee Forum in Jena, Initiative of Refugees and Migrants from Berlin, the Caravan for the Rights of Refugees and Migrants” and Brandenburg Refugee Initiative (FIB) will be observing the trial with Ahmed Sameer and the defence lawyer Ulrich v. Klinggräff from Berlin. After the hearing, there will be a short meeting where more information can be obtained.

Ahmed Sameer, Tel. Handy: 0049 (0) 173 8463038 and Osaren Igbinoba, 0049 (0) 3641 665214

The VOICE Refugee Forum in Jena. Schillergässchen 5, 07745 Jena, Germany,
Tel.0049 (0) 3641 66 5214 E-mail.:  voice_mail@emdash.org,  http://www.thevoiceforum.org

Background:

Ahmed Sameer against Residenzpflicht

At the moment, Ahmed Sameer has four pending cases against the Residenzpflicht. He was first controlled by the police in Berlin in February, 2003, when he was asking for information in the police station on behalf of a friend who wanted to seek asylum. His second control came in March, 2003, at a filling station on the highway Munich-Nuremberg, when he went to meet with his auntie, who actually came from Sweden to see her nephew; in September 2003 he was controlled again both in Hof and Jena respectively, when a bus of refugees was underway to participate in the actions days against the Ausreisezentrum in Fürth, where Residenzpflicht and the social exclusion of refugees was one of the main topics.

For the first three controls, the court decided to combine them into one hearing and the state prosecutor demanded that Ahmed pays a total of 272 euros. In his first hearing, the judge decided to reduce the sentence to either a fine of 150 euros or 50 days in prison. Ahmed immediately appealed this decision and the case has now been taken to the Landesgericht in Erfurt, which will hear his case on the 8th od December.
Ahmed is also threatened with fines for several hundred more euros for other controls (the fine for the 4th control, not yet taken before the court, is 200 euros or 40 days in prison).

The Residenzpflicht-law in Germany

Since 1982, Germany is the only country in Europe were refugees are criminalized by the law of the Residenzpflicht. This law shows that refugees in Germany are meant to be socially isolated, not only by being kept in far away camps in the middle of forests, but also the restriction of movement by this racist law is intended to keep refugees away from the society, not allowing them to be in contact with the general populace and much less fellow refugees and migrants who may be living in other cities.

The Obligatory Residency Law keeps refugees from seeing their doctors, their lawyers, their friends and relatives and for some of them worst of all from continuing their activities which made them flee their country. When German politicians are in uproar about how foreigners are not willing to integrate into the society, such an absurd and inhumane law and the discussion surrounding integration can only be seen as cruel and cynical.

The Obligatory Residency Law has its roots in a time where many Germans do not want to be remember (or be remembered for that matter). Even as far back as 1938 there was a police decree for foreigners published in the Reich Law Bulletin (Reichsgesetzblatt) number 132. In paragraphs one and two of the document, the authorities decreed that any foreigner who left his municipal without previous of the authorities would be fined with 150 Reichmarks and/or sent to prison (Never Again?!).

Thus, Residenzpflicht for refugees violates article 13 of the Universal Human Rights Declaration (Freedom of Movement) as well as article 1 of the German constitution and article 2 paragraph 1, which “guarantee” the right to human dignity and the right to development of the human personality, respectively. Furthermore, the right to assembly is highly restricted with this law.

The Struggle against Residenzpflicht has already its history since the year 2000

Ahmed Sameer is not the first refugee who is not willing to accept such injust restrictions of his most basic rights. Other cases against refugees who do not accept the restriction of their freedom to move, such as Janak Pathak in Lübbecke district (North Rhein – Westphalia), Sunny Omwenyeke (Bremen), Cornelius Yufanyi (Göttingen) and Akubuo Chukwudi in Parchim (Mecklenburg-Vorpommern) have already created awareness
both in public opinion and in the press.