2k rally against Berlin’s Afghan mass deportation deal
Over 2,000 people have gathered on the streets of the German city of Hamburg in protest to a Kabul-Berlin deal aimed at mass deportation of Afghan refugees.
The demonstrators rallied at Hamburg's central train station and marched towards the City Hall on Saturday, chanting slogans such as "Right to stay for all" while holding placards that said "No deportation to Afghanistan."
Earlier in the month, Germany made a deal with Afghanistan that grants Berlin authority to deport refugees who fail to gain asylum.
After the deal was announced, German Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere claimed that it would facilitate the acceptance of Afghan asylum-seekers into the country.
Several of the protesters brandished banners reading, "Mr. de Maiziere's mistake -- Afghanistan is not safe" and "Bombs in Afghanistan are a bad prospect to stay."
"We are demonstrating for the rights of Afghan refugees that must be recognized as such in Germany. Otherwise they will have no chance. They don’t have to go to terrorists and with them work, they want to live in Germany or somewhere in Europe with their families," said protest organizer Tahir Rasuli.
Since the beginning of the refugee crisis in Europe, Germany has accepted over 900,000 Afghan refugees. Meanwhile, anti-refugee sentiment has been growing in the country, with the country’s right-wing anti-refugee political party, Alternative for Germany (AfD), making major gains in several states.
German Chancellor and Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU) leader Angela Merkel has noted that her stance on the refugee crisis was a large contributor to the party's defeat in recent local elections.
The CDU was pushed into third place in an election last month in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania by the AfD which opposes Merkel's welcoming approach to refugees and severely criticizes her policies.
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