Germany will raise its ban on several months from the entry of vulnerable Afghan nationals which he had committed to admit, said on Tuesday an official of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, following legal pressure at home and an expulsion by Pakistan.
About 2,000 Afghans approved for resettlement as part of a program for those considered dynamic under Taliban domination were blocked in neighboring Pakistan for months, after Berlin froze admissions in the middle of a commitment to limit migration.
“In Pakistan, individuals are at different stages of the starting process. The various verification procedures are currently resuming,” said the official. “The staff of the competent authorities are on the ground in Pakistan to continue the admission procedures.”
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The decision follows several proceedings brought by groups and dozens of Afghans contesting the frost.
The Ministry of the Interior, which initially interrupted the program, confirmed that Afghan nationals had promised admission suffer from individual cases.
“The Afghans for which the Federal Republic of Germany was legally obliged by binding judicial decisions to issue visas and authorize the entry will be gradually admitted to Germany,” said a ministry official. Only the Afghans with binding admission approvals will be authorized after the security checks and the exit permits of Pakistan would still be necessary, added the manager.
Matthias Lehnert, a lawyer representing the Afghans who raised legal challenges, said that he had informed the families of the decision and that they were “delighted”.
“These are all procedures imposed by the courts. In this sense, the federal government makes the absolute minimum,” he said.
Emergency
This decision comes as Pakistan is preparing to expel Afghan refugees by a deadline of September 1, including those of the German relocation program.
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Lehnert, who won four cases against the government, said the courts had ruled that Afghans could rely on Berlin admission commitments and were very at risk of expulsion to Afghanistan if they are not relocated.
“This is why it is really scandalous that the government does not act in all other cases and continues to drag things,” he added.
Families with successful court decisions should leave Pakistan soon, although the details are not clear.
Eva Beyer, media and advocacy manager of the Kabul Luftbruecke (Kabul Air Bridge) aid group, said many Afghans have been waiting for “for months, even years” from. She noted that they would be transported by plane in Germany to regular commercial airlines, not charter flights.
