We, activists of the Counseling and Action Centre Friedland e.V. speak here to shed light on what is happening right now in the camp in Friedland but also elsewhere in Germany. Original but translated quotes are read out to you to show what people who have experienced war, persecution and other catastrophes in their countries of origin have to endure in Germany.

“We sleep on thin mattresses with sleeping bags in the corridor. Sleeping isn’t possible, because there are always people crossing.”

“When I arrived in Friedland, I stayed with my wife and my 11 months old daughter on the corridor. It was a really bad situation and my daughter fellsick. After several attempts to get a room, they provided us with a shared room with 3 other men. It is still bad, but of course better than corridors. When my daughter got sick and they didn’t care about that, I asked them to cancel my application as asylum seeker. But they did not accept my cancellation. “

“I didn’t have a health check when I arrived although I have a medical report that states my health problems. I have a hole in one of my ears, so I can’t hear properly. I have a spinal disk problem as well.”

“When I went to tell people that I have pain in my legs due to a war wound they just sent me away.”

“We stand in line for up to 3 hours when we wait for food. You end up spending your whole day like this.”

“2 slices of bread are not enough for dinner for many of us.”

“The toilets and showers are very dirty. The staff tries to keep them clean but there are simply too many people.”

“We are not provided with hot water most of the times. It is a place full of microbes and diseases. Sometimes I even shower my baby (3 months) and my daughter (7 years) in the bed room and then I clean the room. I don’t want them to getsick.”

“I got money after 40 days. This is too late. I couldn’t go to buy extra food.”

“We don’t get money. Sometimes they don’t give us diapers and milk for my daughter. I ask them for these things, and they tell us that I should go and buy them from the supermarket. I tell them that I don’t have money, but they don’t really care.”

“Noone tells us about the asylum procedure. We just hear rumors about the procedure from different people. It really affects our psychological status. Sometimes they tell us that our case is complicated, other times they tell us that we will be fine. It is so bad. “

“People just told me to “find out myself about the asylum procedure.”

“We are very disappointed about the way we are treated here”

“Some people try to collect money to go back to Syria. They say that there they can die in dignity”

These are only some few examples for information we collected by talking to people who live in the camp in Friedland. We think it is a shame that people are treated this way. The German government should finally show more responsibility and change these unbearable circumstances. We demand a better accommodation for refugees in Göttingen and all over the world. Many houses are vacant and there is lots that can be done to ease the situation. Instead, borders are closed and the government keeps on creating new laws working as disincentives, trying to scare people away who have chosen Germany as a refuge from pain and death. We want equal rights to stay for everyone. Refugees welcome, no one is illegal!