Manifesto of refugees to SPD, Greens and FDP

English

Friends of Refugee Solidarity Regional Group South – Email: si-freundeskreis-sued@gmx.de
To: Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) – direct communication@spdfraction.de
Alliance 90/ The Greens - info@gruene-bundestag.de - Free Democratic Party (FDP) - dialog@fdpbt.de

Dear negotiators of the future governing parties in Germany, we are refugees who have come to Germany from a wide variety of countries. We are following your efforts with interest
Defining the politics of the next few years in this country. We want to give you an insight into our situation and our problems. This combined with the heartfelt request that you take these concerns into account in your discussions, agreements and decisions.
We value this country as an economically prosperous country with many people who are open to refugees, but also aggressively hostile racists. With our skills and our strength as well as the experience and knowledge from our home countries, we want to contribute to making Germany's potential blossom. It is therefore our great wish to be able to work for it!
Most of us learned trades in our home countries and we want our skills and abilities to be valued and recognized. Unfortunately, our qualifications are usually not recognised. Many of us are not permitted to work or are not allowed to live in the places where we have found or could find work. Some were even deported from work. We often have difficulties in getting the necessary papers and the necessary German courses. We urgently need help for both!
It is very important to us to bring our families from war and crisis areas to us. However, we do not want this to be financed at the expense of the people living in Germany. That's another reason why we really want to work.
We hear about a major shortage of skilled workers in Germany! We are mostly young and strong, inquisitive and willing to learn. Giving us education and work would be a win-win situation. We respect the laws of this country and express our concerns or even our protest in a democratic and reasoned way. However, we often experience that state authorities do not treat us with the same respect for the law and human dignity. Complaints in court, on the other hand, are often successful in the end – but take a long time. Many shy away from risk and expense.
As we speak, many of us have already been arrested and deported to our countries. Our living conditions in the shelters are sometimes pathetic. Corona was rampant without sufficient protection. We try to convince everyone to vaccinate, which is often not easy due to distrust and bad experiences. We need more support for that. We are often not used to the food from canteen kitchens, because we bring very different eating habits with us from our countries. That would have to be more respected and quiet our own work included in the supply. We also appreciate Germany as a country of religious freedom and yet we experience racist and religious bullying again and again. We are often depressed by the same problems as the German population: the housing shortage makes it difficult to find an apartment, and we also experience reservations from some landlords about refugees. The cost of living is high and rising, the elderly have special problems that are difficult to cope with the low social rates. We left our home countries under duress, with sadness and melancholy and are very homesick. We experienced terrible things while fleeing. Friends and family members of ours drowned, we were also harassed by allies and financial recipients of the German government (such as the Libyan coast guard). We want our experiences to be believed. Our countries are exposed to multiple problems that have driven or even forced us to take this step. Do you seriously believe that we would have exposed ourselves to all the dangers of fleeing for no reason? We want a policy in the world that makes it possible to no longer have to flee, but to be able to enjoy the treasures of our countries, to cultivate friendship with all countries in the world. We want to stay with our families and friends, live and work and give our children a future. We are willing to work hard for this.
For all these reasons, we have joined forces in the Friends of Refugee Solidarity. We wish ourselves and you a society of solidarity and prosperity for all around the world and we ask the future government to shake hands with us because our hearts are full of love and peace.
Greetings Justice, Yuko, Isaiah, Subhia, Demba, Kevin, Haytham, Solution, Jerry, Faith,
Azumah, Dania, and many others