Germany’s Ministry of the Interior has announced that a total of 20 million euros have been allocated for this year in order to fund the asylum procedure advice which offers legal advice for queer people seeking protection, including victims of torture and other vulnerable groups.
The statement notes that with the new funding program, the government is looking to ensure that asylum procedure advice is independent of the authorities, thus the Ministry is implementing two important projects from the coalition agreement, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.
“Many people seeking protection are fleeing persecution and severe repression by state actors in their homeland. They often have reservations about revealing their suffering to official bodies. That is why we are making the asylum procedure advice independent of the authorities,” German Minister of the Interior, Nancy Faeser pointed out regarding the issue.
She added that special needs of those seeking protection who are victims or who have been subject to torture and those who have fled because of their sexual orientation can therefore be better recognized and taken into account in the asylum procedure.
“The asylum procedure advice is aimed at all those seeking protection. The advice is intended to ensure that they are informed about the course and content of the asylum procedure and are advised and supported in the course of it,” the statement reads.
According to the statement, the asylum procedure advice should help to better identify vulnerable people seeking protection who due to their sexual orientation, age a specific disability, a serious illness or as a result of torture have special needs in the asylum procedure or in accommodation.
The asylum procedure advice is independent of authorities following the amendment to the Asylum Act which became effective on January 1 with the Act to Accelerate Asylum Court Procedures as well as Asylum Procedures.
Recently, the German Federal Ministry of the Interior (BMI) previously announced that a total of 244,132 asylum applications were registered at the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees in 2022, thus marking a total of 27.9 per cent compared to 2021.
The data from the same source revealed that by the end of last year, 1,045,185 refugees from Ukraine, the majority of them women and children were registered in the central register of internationals in this country, thus last year, nearly 80 per cent of those seeking protection which came from Ukraine.
