Refugee sponsors Syria

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Refugee sponsors Syria e. V. is a non-profit association based in Berlin . He works in the field of country admission programs for family reunification of Syrian refugees through declarations of commitment . In doing so, he is realizing the only legal possibility (in addition to the family reunification for spouses and minor children, which is currently suspended for those only eligible for subsidiary protection ) of entering Germany as a Syrian refugee with a visa.

Organization and working principle

The refugee sponsors Syria were founded in March 2015 with the statutory goal of securing the submission of the high financial risk commitments from a donation pool and thus making it easier for relatives of Syrian refugees to reunite. For this purpose, the association assumes the costs of travel, subsistence ( basic security according to SGB ​​II ) and rent for the family members who apply if these cannot be borne by their own means.

In this way, the family member is no longer a recipient of benefits at the social welfare office or job center and does not receive any payments there that could be reclaimed from his or her debtor. As long as the association exists, the financial risk of the obligor is assumed by it. From this risk relief, the refugee sponsors Syria expect a greater willingness to commit themselves as an expression of a "refugee policy from the hands of the citizens".

The association is currently chaired by Tina Mede-Karpenstein, Remo Klinger and, until 2017, Martin Keune . Another founding chairman was the co-editor of the Neue Juristische Wochenschrift (NJW) , Ulrich Karpenstein.

Funding and budgeting

The association is financed from donations that are raised using a PayPal and direct debit form on the association's website. The focus here is on the principle of crowdfunding . Thousands of donors are supposed to make possible what the state admission programs would otherwise impose on individuals. Not individual donations, but monthly recurring funding payments should ensure maintenance payments and rents over a long period of time.

The amount of the monthly replenished donation pool is used through budgeting to secure the declarations of commitment made. The monthly budget is estimated at € 600 for an adult and € 450 for a child. Only when this amount is available in the monthly income will a decision be made to include another family member in the program. Surpluses flow into personal reserves, which form a reserve for times of decreasing donations.

A monthly budget of around € 100,000 is available for the livelihood and rent of around 200 people from Syria who have so far been brought in with guarantees or brought on their way, which is raised through monthly sponsorships. The auditing and tax consultancy firm Roever Broenner Susat Mazars advises the association on questions of public benefit and the use of donations and prepares the annual financial statements. On July 28, 2017, the association signed the declaration of self-commitment from Transparency International and published the figures for its 2016 annual report on its website.

Selection criteria

Due to the simulated integration work of the association, it currently limits its activity to Berlin and Brandenburg, but encourages new foundations according to its own model in other federal states and actively supports their establishment. The first regional foundations based on the model of the refugee sponsors Syria are the “Herberge für Menschen auf der Flucht eV” in Hamburg. and the "Thuringian Refugee Sponsors Syria eV"

At the same time, the selection of relatives to be brought in is limited to Syria itself and explicitly does not include refugee camps in neighboring Syrian countries.

In addition, the specific war-related, political, religious or individual risk situation is checked for each individual inquiry. Since the number of inquiries far exceeds the possibilities of the association and is often considerable, especially after international reports, new inquiries were channeled to a form on the association's website, which was initially only available temporarily. The relatives questionnaire has been permanently accessible since June 2017; the association points out on its website the disparity of 1: 100 between its own capacities and the high number of inquiries. The chairman Martin Keune called the resulting rejections of 99% of those seeking help the "hardest part of the work".

According to a circular issued by the Federal Foreign Office on March 20, 2017, there were signs of a tightening of statutory family reunification for unaccompanied, minor refugees (UMF) . While they were previously able to allow underage siblings to legally enter Germany in addition to their parents, the authorities began to refuse visas to these siblings without proof of housing and livelihood, which in most cases made family reunification impossible. For the refugee sponsors in Syria, this has increased the number of requests for children who can continue to get a visa through a guarantee as part of the country admission programs.

Scope and impact of previous work

Syrian refugees greet their family members brought by the association on arrival at a Berlin airport

Since its inception, the refugee sponsors Syria have, according to their own information, based on donations from around 4,200 monthly sponsoring members and the commitments from around 160 citizens, around 200 people who have already entered their program to prepare their departure with embassy appointments in neighboring Syrian countries or to arrange one "Commitment" wait.

In addition to providing direct humanitarian aid to rescuing people threatened by war, the initiative's declared aim is to influence German refugee policy. She conducts political background discussions, for example at the invitation of the Federal Government's Human Rights Commissioner , the Protestant Bishop of the Berlin-Brandenburg State Church, Markus Dröge , or a representative of the UNHCR , does media work in Germany and internationally, and her work inspires specialist European discussions.

In addition to citizens from all over Germany, the Berlinale director Dieter Kosslick , the Bundestag members Tom Koenigs and Annalena Baerbock , the journalist Stephan Detjen and the Berlin Senator for Social Affairs, Elke Breitenbach, also signed letters of commitment in cooperation with the association .

In June 2017, the association was honored for its work in the presence of Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier with the FC Flick Foundation's “Stand Up Prize” against xenophobia, racism and intolerance . The laudation in the Brandenburg State Chancellery was given by the journalist Hajo Schumacher . At the same time, the taz nominated the refugee sponsors Syria from among 129 applications for their Panter Prize . The initiative won the audience award after an online voting.

Integration work

Project shop of the association in Berlin-Moabiter Paulstraße 19.

In addition to the actual work of bringing together regular donors, sponsors and relatives seeking help, the association sees its task above all in the subsequent integration of those brought in. The reunited families should find their place in civil society. Around 50 volunteers contribute to this in various working groups:

  • Language courses with a group of volunteer language teachers
  • Child care during the daily language courses
  • changing teams for renovating and furnishing apartments
  • a medical and psychological network
  • a pilot team, from which one person is available to look after a family
  • a coordination group for political and media work

Award

In 2018, the refugee sponsors Syria received the 3rd prize of the German Integration Prize of the Hertie Foundation .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Overview of the existing state admission programs of the federal states at Pro Asyl
  2. ↑ Stefan Braun: A farce slows down private sponsors . In: Süddeutsche Zeitung , September 18, 2015, accessed on January 20, 2016.
  3. ↑ [1] Inventory of the family reunification of Syrian refugees from Pro Asyl , accessed on June 29, 2017.
  4. ↑ About us . In: fluechtlingspaten-syrien.de . Retrieved January 20, 2016.
  5. ↑ Self- promotion on a club flyer, November 2015
  6. ↑ Martin Keune: Help? Crazy idea . In: Corinna Meinhold / Anja Lerz (eds.): Why we have to do it . Brendow Verlag, Moers 2016, ISBN 978-3-86506-850-7 .
  7. ↑ Burkhard Weitz: Guarantee for refugees . In: Chrismon , 12/2015, accessed January 20, 2016.
  8. ↑ [2] Direct debit module on the club website
  9. ↑ Lifelong commitment to complete strangers . In: Zeit Online , September 18, 2015, accessed January 20, 2016.
  10. ↑ https://fluechtlingspaten-syrien.de/ein-autonomes-projekt-was-ist-das/ website of the association, accessed on May 11, 2017
  11. ↑ Berliners bring Syrians to Germany at their own expense . In: Die Welt , August 20, 2015, accessed January 20, 2016.
  12. ↑ http://www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de/berliner-paten-buergen-fuer-fluechtlinge-mit-dem-flugzeug.1001.de.html?dram%3Aarticle_id=385496 Report on the work of the association in Deutschlandfunk , accessed on 11 May 2017
  13. ↑ Integration of refugees. Company's refugee project page, accessed June 26, 2017.
  14. ↑ How and what do you use your money for? Figures published on the association's website, December 19, 2016, accessed on June 29, 2017.
  15. ^ [3] Transparency report of the association on its website, accessed on August 15, 2017.
  16. ↑ Copy our club idea! In: fluechtlingspaten-syrien.de . May 29, 2015. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
  17. ^ Website of the Hamburg association based on the model of the refugee sponsors Syria eV
  18. ↑ Website of the Thuringian association based on the model of the refugee sponsors Syria eV
  19. ↑ FAQ . In: fluechtlingspaten-syrien.de ; see “How are the relatives selected?”, accessed on January 20, 2016
  20. ↑ Report in the Arabic edition of the Huffington Post ( memento of the original from August 15, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.huffpostarabi.com archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , April 16, 2016, accessed June 26, 2016
  21. ↑ [4] "Saving lives from € 10 per month". Martin Keune on the high number of inquiries, the selection criteria and the limitation of the work due to the donations. Retrieved January 18, 2017.
  22. ↑ [5] . Conditions of cooperation, shown on the association's website. Retrieved June 27, 2017.
  23. ↑ [6] Portrait of the refugee sponsors in the taz of June 24, 2017. Retrieved on June 24, 2017.
  24. ↑ [7] Circular of the Federal Foreign Office of March 20, 2017 as PDF at Pro Asyl. Retrieved August 13, 2017.
  25. ↑ [8] Report by the refugee sponsors about three children from Aleppo. Retrieved August 13, 2017.
  26. ↑ [9] Summary of the tightening of Pro Asyl . Retrieved August 13, 2017.
  27. ↑ fluechtlingspaten-syrien.de . Retrieved May 5, 2017
  28. ↑ Un paso más allá en la solidaridad . In: El País , Madrid 9/2015, accessed January 20, 2016 (Spanish).
  29. ↑ Refugee crisis: central and eastern Europe ministers meet in Prague - live . In: The Guardian , London 9/2015, accessed January 20, 2016.
  30. ↑ Alemania muestra su solidaridad durante la crisis de los refugiados . In: Radiotelevisión Española , December 26, 2015, accessed January 20, 2016 (Spanish).
  31. ↑ Вести недели с Дмитрием Киселёвым Article about the refugee sponsors on the TV station Rossija 1 in: YouTube (from 30:18) . Retrieved January 20, 2016 (Russian).
  32. ↑ https://duitslandinstituut.nl/artikel/20998/voor-vluchtelingen-borg-staan-wordt-moeilijker Article about the refugee sponsors in the Dutch Duitsland Instituut. Retrieved May 11, 2017 (Dutch).
  33. ^ Judith Kumin: Welcoming Engagement: How Private Sponsorship Can Strengthen Refugee Resettlement in the European Union . In: migrationpolicy.org , December 2015, accessed January 20, 2016
  34. ↑ Prof. Christian Koenig: Is the state pushing itself? In: Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung , 8/2016, accessed on January 20, 2016.
  35. ↑ https://www.srf.ch/sendung/tagesschau/ja-zu-energiestrategie-trump-in-saudi-arabien-virtual-reality Statement in the Tagesschau of the Swiss SRF 1 on May 21, 2017. Retrieved on 25. May 2017.
  36. ↑ https://fluechtlingspaten-syrien.de/die-sozialsenatorin-unterschritten/
  37. ↑ https://fluechtlingspaten-syrien.de/verspaetet-aber-nicht-zu-spaet/
  38. ↑ https://www.rbb-online.de/brandenburgaktuell/archiv/20170622_1930/steh-auf-preis.html report  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. of the RBB of June 22, 2017. Retrieved June 23, 2017.@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / www.rbb-online.de  
  39. ↑ [10] Nomination portrait in the taz of June 24, 2017. Retrieved on June 24, 2017.
  40. ↑ Dilek Güngör: Why helping doesn't make you happier . May 6, 2015. Deutschlandradio Kultur , accessed on January 20, 2016.
  41. ↑ Report on the language courses and the work of the initiative ( memento of the original from January 17, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. in ZDF-Mittagsmagazin , September 2, 2015 (from 41:33) , accessed on January 20, 2016.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.zdf.de
  42. ↑ Refugee sponsors commit themselves for a lifetime . (offline) Report on apartment renovation by the refugee sponsors Syrien eV on Spiegel Online .
  43. ↑ Kai Praum: Attention for any price. In: www.die-stiftung.de. Retrieved December 20, 2018 .