New Times Summer 2015

PLEASE STOP MOVING US

AROUND

REFUGEES. REPORT. LIFE.

NEWTIMESSUMMER 2015 > ISSUE # 94

DIFFICULT LIFE OF A PREGNANT ASYLUM SEEKER ASYLUM SEEKER DID NOT GET HER CHECK UP

PAGE 14

POLITICS IN DENMARK GET AN OVERVIEW OF THE DANISH POLITICAL PARTIES

PAGE 09

TOUGH START FIVE-YEAR-OLD HAS TO SAY GOODBYE TO MOM OR DAD

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MANY ASYLUM SEEKERS

EXPERIENCE TO BE MOVED SEVERAL TIMES BETWEEN

DIFFERENT ASYLUM CENTERS WHILE

THEY HAVE THEIR CASE PROCESSED IN

DENMARK

| ISSUE # 94 | SUMMER 2015 | NEW TIMES

Note:Some of the journalists use their real names, but some use pseudonyms because they do not want their whereabouts known by people in their home countries.

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed are those of the authors and the persons interviewed and not – unless stated clearly – the opinion of the Danish Red Cross.

Published by:The Danish Red Cross

Editorial Office:New TimesRosenørns Allé 31, 2. sal, 1970 FrederiksbergEmail: [email protected]. +45 23 34 58 87

Editor: Robin Ali Ahrenkiel El-Tanany

New Times Journalists:Negar, Makmoud, Ahmed, Robert, Nice, Kazhal, Sam, Ismael

Editorial assistants:Camilla Q Madsen, Michael Bang, Nana Fischer

Volunteers:Silje Garnås Kristiansen

Interns:Jolanda

Layout:Jens Burau, supergreen.dk

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ASIG:ASIG (Asylum Seekers Information Group) answers questions about asylum and life as a refugee. Individuals, teachers, students, journal-ists and anyone interested in asylum matters are welcome to send an inquiry. To book the group for lectures, presentations and discus-sions contact [email protected]

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Imagine that you are a refu-gee. You have reached the safe country of Denmark and you are now anxiously awaiting the decision of the authorities. Can you stay or not? You live in an asylum center on Zealand, and start working as an intern in Copenhagen. You get friends. You slowly start to settle and start a kind of life again.

Then one evening you are suddenly told that you will need to pack your things and move to another center. In Jutland. Next morning. Just like that.

You try to stop it without luck. You try to get an expla-nation from the responsible people in the Immigration Ser-vice and are told that there is a big pressure on the rooms in your asylum center. There is nothing they can do.

This is not a made up story. This was experienced by a member of New Times. The story is far from unique. We fre-quently see this happening for our team members in the office and see it happen in the cent-ers. Sometimes with one days

notice. Other times three days.Imagine how many people

are being moved with short notice around the country.

Giving asylum seekers - many of whom have post trau-matic stress syndrome, depres-sions and other challenges - one or three days warning for a moving is not beneficial for their mental well being, and I question myself: Is it not pos-sible to minimize the number of movings between the centers in Denmark? At least it should be possible to give asylum seekers

longer notice when they are to be moved from their temporary homes. From their friends and colleagues.

In a country where the bus and train schedules are exact down to the minute, it should be possible to change this with-out spending a lot of money on it.

Of course I am not expecting magic from the staff at Immi-gration Service. They can have a tough job finding places for people and when there is a high demand for rooms I can easily

understand that they need to move people around.

This problem could be avoided by adding just a little more planning from the rele-vant authorities.

The refugees in Denmark deserve that we try.

Robin Ali Ahrenkiel El-Tanany

DEAR READER

REFUGEES. REPORT. LIFE.

NEWTIMES

MORE STORIES ON:www.newtimes.dk and facebook.com/newtimes.dk

A scene from the refugee fashion show at the Trampoline House in April by Dady de Maximo. Photo: Ahmed

NEW TIMES | SUMMER 2015 | ISSUE # 94 | PAGE 3

“YOU HAVE TO MOVE”Many asylum seekers experience to be moved from asylum center to asylum center several times while they are in Denmark. Often with a notice of just three days.

Read about their experiences and frustrations on the following pages.

Photo: Vahid


SAMI FROM ERITREA HAS MOVED THREE TIMES IN NINE MONTHS ❚ By: Eden

In which asylum centers have you been?

I have been in Sandholm for one night. Then five days in Helsingør (Northern Zealand), then seven months in Ranum (Northern Jutland) and now almost two months Sandholm.

Do you know why they moved you from one center to another?

No, I don’t know why.

If they move you again what you will do?

I want stay here until I know the answer from Immgration Service. I hope there will be no more moving. It is not easy for an asylum seeker to move to a new place. I miss my room mate in Ranum. He was from my own country, we cooked together, we talked the same language and we understood each other.

ELMA’S CHILDERN WERE STRESSED OF MOVING ❚ By: Eden

Elma has been in Denmark for six years. She remembers all her movings and they have all been horrible.

Elma was crying every time she got the moving message, because it is very hard to pack things with three kids. And she was not informed about the movings until a few days before.

She remembers one time when she was informed in the night that she should move the next morning. ”I just cried a lot. I did not know what to do or how to start. My kids are small. I asked my friend to help me”, she says.

”My children were angry and unhappy, I didn’t know how to explain, when they asked me why we are moving”.

She doesn’t know the reason why they have been moved so much. First they stayed in Sand-holm for one month. Then to Brovst (Northern Jutland) for two years. Then back to Sand-holm where police informed her that she will be deported. Then she went to Sweden for one and a half month before coming back to Denmark. She then stayed in Sandholm for ten months, then eight months in Auderød, then back again to Sandholm for eight months before Immigration Service allowed her to live outside of

the asylum department in her own apartment.

Have your kids been effected by the moving?

Yes. A psychologist told me the movings has had an impact on my childrens’ psyclogical well being, personality type, social relationships and their behavior.

I HAD VERY SHORT TIME TO SAY GOODBYE TO MY FRIENDS AND COLLEAGUES ❚ By: Nice

I got the moving notice a Friday night when a Red Cross staff put a paper on my room’s refrigera-tor saying that we have to move from Center Avnstrup to Center Samsø (island between Jutland and Zealand). My moving date was on Monday morning with the earliest bus.

Actually, I had requested the Immigration Service to move me out from Center Avnstrup to somewhere that was more family friendly wishing for a place located close to Copenhagen and my praktik in New Times and the Trampoline House.

I was shocked when I found out that the place was on Samsø and not Roskilde.

I had very short time to say my good byes to all my beloved friends and my colleagues in New Times Magazine and in the Trampoline House on Saturday and Sunday.

I am thankfull to Immigra-tion Service that they moved me and my daughter out from my problems in Center Avn-strup. But it is very difficult to integrate to the Danish com-munity when they move us to remote areas far away from the places where we already have settled down.


MOVING FROM CENTER TO CENTER: THE ENDLESS STORYI have been moved six times from asylum center to asylum center and am now in danger of being moved again

❚ By: Sam

When I applied for asylum I was at Asylum Center Sandholm, where most asylum seekers start. That was fine by me as my half Danish brother and his mother lived in Ballerup which is not so far from Sandholm. So we could still visit and meet each other.

FROM SANDHOLM TO SIGERSLEVThen after more than two months they moved me to the Sigerslev Asylum Center which was very far from Ballerup. That was disappointing in the beginning since the trip to see my family was more than two hours each way. But Sigerslev itself was a nice calm center and I shared the room with my colleague from New Times.

NEXT STOP JYLLANDShort time after that the Immi-gration authorities wanted to move me to Jylland. Luckily the movement was cancelled after my lawyer spoke with the immigration authorities. But then they closed The Sigerslev Center down and moved us again. Why is it so hard to just put me in one center and keep me there till my case is over?

HUGE NIGHTMAREThen they moved me to Center Avnstrup. Shortly after that the Immigration authorities decides to move me to Born-holm. That drove me totally insane as I would be far from my family, my friends and also my praktik-job. I tried to com-

plain a lot, my brother, and my Danish friends called asking for me to stay. But the Immigration Service simply said they had no space in Sjælland.

BACK TO SJÆLLANDI was suffering a lot on Born-holm. The Red Cross staff told me they were doing their best to move me back and luckily I was moved back to Center Avn-strup after three months.

After two months I moved to Roskilde. This was my wish as it is closer to Copenhagen (my praktik and family) and also the mobilenet and internet works fine so I can easily do my tasks now.

But now the Immigration authorities has decided to move the 25 single men out of the center. They say they will make it a family center. So now I am in risk of being moved for the

seventh time. Really, nothing can describe how this makes me feel and how much it changed and affected me.

IT IS NOT THE SAME IN NORWAY ❚ By: Eden

I have been seeking asylum in Norway. Here I learned that asylum seekers usually stay in transit camps from 3-8 weeks. After that they are transferred to other camps where they stay until they know the result of their case - depending on how long time your case takes. But in general asylum seekers are not moved from place to place like in Denmark.

New Times has contacted the Norwegian Organisation for Asylum Seekers (NOAS) to check whether this experience is unique or standard in Norway. NOAS is an independent membership organisation working to protect the rights of asylum seekers in Norway.According to NOAS, the information is correct; Asylum seekers in Norway are moved to a permanent center after eight weeks. Here they will stay until they receive the decision from the Immigration Service.

NORWEGIAN ORGANISATION CONFIRMS INFORMATION


Name: Zobeida MirzaeiCountry: AfghanistanAge: 54 Arrival in Denmark: January 2009Number of movings between centers: 3 (Thyregod, Jelling, Avnstrup)

“Being moved around has been tremendously dif-ficult, especially when being sick.“

Name: Mira Jan RezaeeCountry: AfganistanAge: 84Arrival in Denmark: November 2009Number of movings between centers: 3 (Sandholm, Holmeg-aard, Avnstrup)

“Being moved from camp to camp is problematic. You lose your friends and network every time. The uncer-tainty of not know-ing when we will be moved brings me sorrow. I’m just sad.“


Name: Nesar Ahmad Golmo-hammadiCountry: AfghanistanAge: 68Arrival in Denmark: November 2011Number of movings between centers: 3 (Hanstholm, Siger-slev, Avnstrup)

“The past four years have been the hard-est in my entire life. Moving from camp to camp has been very difficult, more than giving a birth”.

Name: Mohamad ShahbaziCountry: IranAge: 22Arrival in Denmark: 2010Number of movings between centers: 6 (Sjælsmark, Sandvad, Jelling, Avnstrup, Ringsted, Avnstrup)

Martin Thaulow is a photographer and visual artist who has spent thousands of hours with refugees, filming and photographing them in asylum centers across Denmark. He is currently working on a photo book, portraying some of the refugees he met along the way. New Times thanks him and his assistant Ahmed Karim for their donation of pictures and voluntary work for us and refer our readers to his amazing non profit project Refugee.Today. To find out more: www.refugee.today

THANKS

“Moving from camp to camp is very bad. My mental state is in a bad condition. I want to stay at the same place, where I feel safe and sound. Every time you are moved you have to start all over again. I feel like I’m in a prison”.


”MINIMIZE THE NUMBER OF MOVINGS”The head of the Red Cross asylum depart-ment, Anne La Cour, is regularly raising the concern about movings to the Danish authorities

❚ By: Robin Ali Ahrenkiel El-Tanany

”There is no doubt that the many movings is a heavy burden, and every time there has been an opportunity, we have asked the Immigra-tion Service to minimize the number of mov-ings. In Norway we have heard that asylum seekers are only moved once until they get their case settled. The Danish authorities could be inspired by that. One of the big advantages with fewer movings is that asylum seekers get the stability and peace that they need in a stressful time of their lives. We need to move away from all which break down human life and health. We need to build people and make them stronger. Asylum seekers need strength - whether it is for integration in the Danish society or for continuing life somewhere else.”

Foto: Anna-Lene Riber

PSYCHOLOGIST: MOVINGS CAN REINFORCE A SENSE OF HOPELESSNESSRed Cross Chief Psychologist Ivan Doulgerof, explains the effects that many movings can have on an asylum seeker’s life


“Life as an asylum seeker is characterized as travel or escape from and loss of home, uncer-tainty about the future, chang-ing and broken relations and all the challenges associated with the stay in the asylum system. In this context, the center mov-ings have a number of conse-quences for the asylum seeker.

A key part of human exist-ence is a fundamental need to belong somewhere, the need for continuity, for stability and for security. It is a need that

all people share. It is part of our evolutionary history, and if these needs are not met for a long time, it has major impli-cations for our thoughts, feel-ings and even for our physical health.

LACK OF CONTROLAnother key aspect for people is the experience of control and the possibility to affect your surroundings and be a master of your own life. When you as an asylum seeker repeatedly are being asked to move or experi-ence important meetings with the authorities being cancelled,

it is a constant reminder that you are not in charge of your own life. It cements the fact that life as an asylum seeker is char-acterized by all the things that you cannot and should not do. It can affect the asylum seek-er’s experience of internal con-sistency, because it can create increased frustration and rein-force a sense of hopelessness that many asylum seekers are experiencing through their stay in the asylum system.”

New Times has tried to get a comment from the Danish Immigration Service. We would have liked to know why the Immigration Service move the asylum seekers between dif-ferent asylum centers and why they do so with such short notice. However our attempts were in vain. We were told that the responsible office was busy. We tried for more than 14 days. We will try to get a comment on this issue for our next maga-zine.

No explanation from the Immigration Service – Yet


ELECTION IN DENMARKThe 18th of June Danes are casting their votes in the general election for members of Parliament. New Times therefore puts spotlight on the Danish political parties - with a special focus on their asylum policies

FACTS ABOUT THE DANISH DEMOCRACYThe Danish society is based on established principles of free-dom and democracy. Derived from Ancient Greek, democ-racy literally means “rule of the people”. In a democratic society, power ideally lies with the people as a whole and not with an individual or a limited number of individuals.

In Denmark, people exercise

their sovereign power through various channels of political participation: voting in general elections for the Parliament, municipal and regional coun-cils and referendums on specific issues, forming interest groups and labour unions, as well as taking part in public debate. At the same time, certain basic individual rights are protected by the Constitution and cannot be violated. To secure constant

checks and balances, the leg-islative, executive and judicial powers are effectively sepa-rated in Denmark.

The Danish democracy is representative, whereby citi-zens elect members of Parlia-ment to govern on their behalf. To hold the elected representa-tives accountable to the elector-ate, general elections must take place at least every four years, as laid down in the Constitu-

tion. In reality, elections usually take place with shorter inter-vals.


30

25

20

15

10

5

Election 2011

2012 2013

Marlene Borst, Spokeswoman on Alien Affairs, The Social Liberal Party (Det Radikale Venstre)

Will you introduce any policy changes concerning the asylum area if you remain in the gov-ernment after the national elec-tion? Which ones?

We are satisfied with the changes we have made so far. People are waiting for shorter periods in the asylum centers; they are able to begin a new life

in Denmark quicker. There have been made significant changes since we got elected. The vast majority of the rules in the field of asylum are tied up to inter-national conventions, which we will proceed to follow.

We must always pay atten-tion to the people who come to Denmark and the way they are being let into the Danish society. We would like to take a look at the activities the asylum seekers are offered in the cent-ers to see if they are sufficient. We would also like to discuss whether we are treating the children in the best possible way, if they should go to school in or outside of the centers for instance. These issues are important but of course first of all to the people who are living

in the asylum centers for a long time. It is only the case for the fewest. The processing time of the asylum cases is relatively short in Denmark.

What will it take for you to reconsider to make it possible to apply for family reunifica-tion immediately after receiving asylum and not after one year as now?

Only very few will be affected by the new rule. It is not even 20 percent who will be affected. The law is adopted for a three-year period, so in three years we will look at it again and at that point we are really hoping to abolish it.

On a scale from 1 to 10 (10 being the highest) how interested are

you then in having asylum seek-ers in Denmark?

That is a poorly formulated question. We would prefer not to have any at all if that was the same as peace in the world. Preferably we would have no asylum seekers, but as long as there are this many refugees in the world I think it’s impor-tant to perceive the asylum seekers as resources and not as a burden. But I can’t give you a clear answer. It’s not a goal in itself to have many asylum seekers; on the contrary it’s a goal to reduce the extent of the refugee problem worldwide.

The two parties in Government and the two biggest oppistion parties were given a short list of questions on asylum issues


2014 2015

SOCIAL DEMOCRATS

LIBERALS

DANISH PEOPLE’S PARTY

RED GREEN ALLIANCE

LIBERAL ALLIANCE

SOCIALISTIC PEOPLE’S PARTY

SOCIAL LIBERALS

CONSERVATIVE PEOPLE’S PARTY

CHRISTIAN DEMOCRATS

Ole Hækkerup, Spoksesman on Immigra-tion and alien affairs, The Social Demo-crats (Socialdemokraterne)

Will you introduce any policy changes concerning the asylum area if you remain in the gov-ernment after the national elec-tion? Which ones?

We will consider how things are going. We will se if there are changes or developments and deal with it. I can’t be more

specific; it’s about seeing how things are developing.

What will it take for you to reconsider to make it possible to apply for family reunifica-tion immediately after receiving asylum and not after one year as now?

I don’t think there is any-thing that will make us recon-sider that.

On a scale from 1 to 10 (10 being the highest) how interested are you then in having asylum seek-ers in Denmark?

We are not an island and it’s not possible for us to withdraw from the world. On the other hand we can’t take responsibil-ity for all the world’s problems.

Danish People’s Party (Dansk Folkeparti)

The Danish People’s party seeks to limit immigration to Denmark. They believe

that refugees should be helped in their neighboring countries rather than applying for asylum in Denmark. Furthermore Danish People’s Party will not grant asylum if a person fails to file asylum in the countries they have been in before arriving in Denmark. Danish People’s Party state that all refugees should only be granted temporary resi-dence and immediately ordered to return home when the con-ditions in the home country change for the better.

Source: http://www.danskfolkeparti.dk

Denmark’s Liberal Party (Venstre)

D e n m a r k ’ s Liberal Party will tighten the require-ments for for-eigners, who

are only potentially suitable for integration and make it easier for those, who are evaluated most suitable for integration. Furthermore, Denmark’s Liberal Party will make easier to deport criminal asylum seekers.

Since May 1 2015, New Times has tried to get a comment from several

members of Denmark’s Liberal Party. As we

have tried for several weeks to get answers

from the representatives from Danish People’s

Party. Without any luck. Instead we bring central

parts from their policy papers

Source: “New immigration policy – For those who can and will” from August 2014:


UNWISE TOUGH TALK WINS ELECTIONSIn Denmark and the rest of Europe the politicians use tough talk against the surge of refugees coming towards us to find protec-tion. It works if you want to win elections, but it is not wise, says Director of Centre for European Politics, Marlene Wind


How welcoming is Denmark towards asylum seekers?

Denmark is in the top 5 of countries receiving most asylum seekers per capita. That might be surprising to some, because all Danish politicians only talk about being tough on immigration and asylum issues. But actually the politicians should proudly talk about that we are one of the best EU coun-tries in receiving asylum seek-ers.This does not mean however that we could not do more.

Why do you think the politicians are so focused on tough talk against asylum seekers?

I think it is all about the upcoming election. Many spin doctors tell their politicians that they have to at least pretend that we have a very strict immi-gration policy.

Do you win and lose elections in Denmark and Europe on your immigration policy?

That is the heart of the matter. The politicians obvi-ously believes this. We see hard-liners all over Europe; Le Pen in France, UKIP in Great Britain, Pegida in Germany and many others. The other parties in the center of national politics are afraid that if they just imply a wish for doing something for the refugees their voters will leave them and go to the right wing parties. But I do not think that is necessarily true. I think you can also win votes by being constructive and offen-

sive. Most people want to help these victims of war and perse-cution, but few have any solu-tion for the challenge. But the politicians are not talking about solutions. They compete about being the toughest. And that does not bring in any solutions for the huge challenge we are facing at the moment.

Are there any countries in Europe where the majority of the politi-cians are not competing to be the most tough?

Yes. The public debate in Germany and Sweden is funda-mentally different compared to the rest of Europe. They have a more positive and progressive debate and believe that they have a responsibility to help the refugees.

Can you see any good solution to the challenge of receiving the biggest number of refugees since World War II?

All over Europe too few babies are born. It is a huge

problem because soon the Euro-pean countries will be needing many hands to be able to fill out all the jobs. A recent study from Germany showed that the problem was significant in the service sector - a sector that refugees relatively fast can be trained to fill out. That could be one way to look at the current situation. But solutions like this are almost impossible to talk about in the present political climate in Denmark and most other EU countries.

Politicians are not talking about solu-tions to the huge refugee challenge in the

EU. They only compete about being the toughest, says Marlene Wind.


WHY DO REFUGEES FLEE TO THE COUNTRIES THEY DO?Interview with immigration researcher Martin Lemberg-Petersen from University of Copenhagen

❚ By: Michael Bang

How is the situation of refugees around Europe right now?

It is unstable and compre-hensive. Globally, we see more refugees than we have done since World War II. Around Europe, there is a number of crises and conflicts, which are leading to more refugees, who are trying to get to Europe.

Why do refugees to Europe?The neighbourhood areas

where refugees traditionally fled to, is filled or has become unstable. For example Turkey and Lebanon each have two million refugees, and Lebanon has a population of only 4.4 mil-lion. Libya has been a migration country for many workers, but is now also unstable. Therefore, Europe is now the next neigh-bourhood area. Of course there are also myths promoted by some smugglers of Europe as an Eldorado, but with a compari-son of Somalia and Europe, it is of course not entirely wrong.

Why do refugees flee to the countries they do?

There is not made any spe-cific studies of the reasons why people flee to Denmark. There are made some studies that have compared the idea that people seek to countries because of welfare or because of social networks, and they found out that friends and family were the primary cause - and not the social services. Governments and political parties have often launched the claim that welfare is a pull factor for migration, but there is no research substantiat-ing that claim.

How many of the refugees who come to Europe, will you describe as “comfort refugees” (bekvem-melighedsflygtninge)?

I have a problem with the category because it implies that one can make a meaning-

ful analogy between a refugee on the Mediterranean Sea and a consumer who must choose between different types of soap in a supermarket. I don’t agree with analogy. On a fundamen-tal level, you can say that both people make choices, but I do not think it makes sense to make that comparison.

There are some who flee because they are personally persecuted, then there are others who flee because they have lost their livelihoods, for example because of drought, and then there are others who flee because they are looking for work. You must distinguish between the three categories. It is vital if we want a function-ing asylum system, to evaluate who has a genuine protection need and who has not, but it is certainly something else than to say that some are comfort refugees.

Will it result in fewer asylum seekers in Denmark if we reduce the welfare benefits for refugees?

No, I do not think so. I think that the reasons refugees are looking towards for example Denmark is much more com-plex than what the Danish poli-ticians decide through different initiatives. There is no research indicating that political deci-sions have a real impact.

The argument that if we now cut the benefits for refugees in Denmark, to deter more to come, is indeed a really cyni-cal way to use some people we believe are legitimate refugees. It is using them and their living conditions to deter others, and it is even some people who you believe need of protection oth-erwise they would not have been granted residence permit.

What are the long-term costs to host a refugee?

The Rockwool Foundation Research made the calculation in January 2014, but it is diffi-

cult to say whether it is correct and what assumptions it makes use of. It shows that it provides an economic net loss to accept immigration. Calculations in Sweden and the UK show a net profit.

If you want to avoid thousands of refugees to drown in the Medi-terranean, what should you do?

In the short term you have to save them, by expanding the scope for search and rescue missions, and ensure that you have a coherent approach with a humanitarian mandate. Both are somewhat lacking in the Triton and Poseidon mis-sion today. In the longer term, it is about the foundation of the smuggling industry. The EU has launched plans for military intervention in Libya. I do not think that is the solution. I fear it will capture a lot of refugees in Libya, which is unstable and dangerous to live in. Secondly, the smuggling routes just move, as they have done it before. It is only treating the symptoms. The causes of refugees will remain.

The refugee camps are filled up in the neighbourhood areas,

therefore refugees seek to Europe. This picture is from a

UN camp in Chad. Photo: Euro-pean Commision


THE DIFFICULT LIFE OF A PREGNANT ASYLUM SEEKERMy husband and I were so excited and happy when we found out that I was pregnant. But now I cannot get a screening for my baby and I am scared and stressed

❚ By: Kazhal

Is my baby healthy? What gender is my baby? When am I due? Where will I give birth?

I am an asylum seeker at Center Sandholm. I am pregnant for the first time. Five months pregnant. I have problems get-ting help with the baby.

MY STRUGGLE TO GET A SCREENINGAt 22 weeks I tried to get a second screening at the Sand-holm medical clinic. I wanted to get an ultrasound to see whether my baby had birth defects. In this time of the preg-nancy it is necessary that I have the examination of the fetus. But they would not give me the check up. They told me it was because my asylum case is closed and I don’t have a doctor anymore. Instead a nurse came and did a simple check up.

A MOTHERS WORRIESThis is my first child and I am worried. I have a lot of questions and I am scared for the health of my child’s brain and for giving birth for the first time.

My concern is for my health and strength of the baby’s bones. I want to make sure that everything is okay. I want to know if my baby is a boy or a girl because it is the first time for me and I am excited. I want to know what date I will give birth and in what hospital. All of this is very important to me.

WHAT DO I DO NOW?I do not have money to pay for screening myself. All I can do is wait and pray that my baby will be healthy and normal. Before this I have experienced a mis-carriage and I am terrified that I will go through it again. Every day the clinic is open to preg-nant women, I go to the clinic, but I don’t get any answers. For two weeks I have been wait-ing to receive mail from the hospital regarding an appoint-

ment. Time is running out. I feel stressed and anxious.

All I want is to see my healthy baby on the ultra sound scanning monitor and put the picture up on my refrigerator like everyone else.


Red Cross informs New Times that all pregnant asylum seekers are offered the same number of check-ups during pregnancy as all other pregnant women in Denmark (see figure). If needed, it will always be possible to get more consultations with health care staff. Also; a pregnant woman and her family cannot be deported if she is expected to give birth within four weeks or less. Deporta-tion is also blocked untill eight weeks after giving birth. This is an agreement between the Immigra-tion Service and the Danish Police.

RESPONSE FROM RED CROSSWe are attentive towards vul-nerable and exposed asylum seekers in the health clinics of the asylum centres run by the Red Cross. We are furthermore, especially, attentive towards the extended pressure of being an asylum seeker and at the same time being pregnant. We are therefore very sorry for the experience endured by the pregnant woman during her pregnancy.

We are highly affected by the incident, and we are aiming at understanding what went wrong.

In the Red Cross health-clin-ics at the asylum centres we are working in accordance with the recommendations of Sund-hedsstyrelsen (Danish Health and Medicines Authority). The pregnant asylum seeker will be offered the same services and care equal to what is provided to all Danish citizens who are pregnant.

In the article we are informed that the woman were told that she would not be provided with any health-services due to

her closed case. The fact of the matter is, however, that we do not look at the status of the resi-dents. Everyone who is residing in the Red Cross asylum centre is provided with the same health-services regardless for their asylum status. The infor-mation given to the woman was not correct, and for that we are sorry.

I met with the pregnant woman and together we looked into her medical journal. What was written in the journal is, of course, confidential. However, we found that she should not have been moved to a different centre during the time of her pregnancy. That was a mistake.

Upon moving, the hospital where the woman initially was scheduled to give birth was changed to a different hospital, and unfortunately, her journal got lost in between the two hos-pitals.

In the health-clinic at Sand-holm the staff was awaiting to be notified of future appoint-ments from the hospital the woman was transferred to

– however, no such notifica-tions were made, and it did not appear automatically.

One could of course ask the question of why the staff in the health-clinic at Sandholm did not ask for the informa-tion themselves. However, we are occupied with several hun-dred cases of health-treatments related to the clinic, and thus we are not capable of gather-ing such information automati-cally. Therefore, we appreciate it when the residents themselves approach us and ask for contact to the various practitioners.

The woman is now in con-tact with the new hospital and midwife at Sandholm, and will be looked after there for the remaining time of her preg-nancy.

Jytte Birthe JensenCoordinating Health Care ProfessionalDanish Red Cross

YOUR RIGHTS AS PREGNANT IN THE RED CROSS ASYLUM SYSTEM

Ultra- sound

First-time mothers Experienced mothers What?

Weeks Doctor Midwife Doctor Midwife6-10 ● ●

8-13 Doubletest11-13 ● Nuchal translucency

scan13-15 ● ●

15-22 Tripletest if necessary18 ● Misadlfoarnmnaetli-

soensssccaannning21 ● ●

25 ● ●

29 ● ●

32 ● ●

35 ●

36 ●

37 ●

39 ● ●

(41) ● ●


We sent your ques-tions to the lawyers at the Danish Refu-gee Council. Here are their replies

ASK A LAWYER

DO YOU HAVE A QUESTION? WRITE TO:

New TimesRosenørns Allé 31, 2. sal, 1970 Frederiksbergor email us at [email protected] feel free to ask your questions anonymously.

1 I am very worried. I am pregnant and soon about to give birth. My request

for asylum was rejected by Danish Refugee Board. My hus-band lives and works in Den-mark. He was granted protec-tion status more than five years ago. I am currently waiting for the Immigration Service’s deci-sion of agreement for reunifica-tion family. What will be my child’s residence status?

1Your child will be able to obtain residency based on your husband’s permit.

When the child is born, you can apply with the Immigra-tion Service, they will normally grant the residency for the child as soon as they are certain your husband is the father. Your own application for family reunifi-cation is still being processed and will not be affected by the application for your child. You are welcome to contact the

Danish Refugee Council Vol-untary Advisory Service if you need assistance with an appli-cation for your child. We wish you a happy childbirth.

2 I’m from Somalia. My family was granted asylum in Denmark,

but my application has been rejected. After that I went to Germany, but according to the Dublin Convention, returned to Denmark. Some days ago I received the Danish authori-ties’ letter to leave Denmark. In the meantime, I also received a letter from my lawyer in Ger-many. He wrote that if Den-mark confirmed the rejection decision, I should come to Ger-many and he will continue to advocate for my case. Can I now legally leave Denmark?

2 When an asylum claim is finally rejected in Den-mark, you are normally

required to return to your home country. It is only legal to travel in Europe if you have valid travel documents. When the Refugee Board decides to reject an application, they also give you a deadline to leave Denmark. But unless you have travel documents and permis-sion to enter another country, it is only legal to leave Den-mark for your home country. It is possible to receive counsel and sometimes financial sup-port if you consider a voluntary return to your home country. If a rejected asylum seeker travels to another country in Europe, that country will normally try to return you to the country where the asylum case was pro-cessed. You are welcome to con-tact the Danish Refugee Council if you would like more counsel-ling.

3 Danish Refugee Board’s decision for my asylum request was negative.I

filed a complaint with the Human Rights Court in Europe, which stopped the deportation to my home country, but I have not got a final answer yet. A few days ago there have been some new developments, which significantly affect my case. Can I, on that ground, apply the Danish authorities for reopen-ing my case? If so, who should I reach out to?

3 It is always possible to ask the Refugee Appeals Board to reopen a case.

Generally it is quite hard to have a case reopened. The Refu-gee Appeals board sometimes reopen cases if there is impor-tant new information which was not available when the case was decided or if the situation in the home country has changed significantly. The average pro-

cessing time for a petition to reopen a case is 12 months. Since your deportation has been stopped by the European Court of Human Rights, you should be able to remain in Denmark while a petition to reopen your case is processed. Depending on the nature of the information, it might also be prudent to for-ward it to the European Court of Human Rights, but we or your lawyer would have to assess the information before taking that decision. You are welcome to contact the Danish Refugee Council if you would like us to look at your case in detail.

Spring is the eternal rebirth of life, especially for plants. The smells and colours are enchanting. The face of Copenhagen has changed and this is reflected on the city and its dwellers. And me too. (Photo and text: Makmoud)

A TOUGH START OF LIFEFive-year-old Amal will soon have to say goodbye to one of her parents

❚ By: Ismael

Amal is a five year old little girl who likes to play with her toys and to draw with her colour pencils. She is often making fun and is full of life. Her father lives in Denmark, but Amal will soon be deported with her mother to Uzbekistan.

Amal has lived four of her years in Sandholm asylum center. She was born in Den-mark in 2010 after a marriage between her mother and her father - both asylum seekers in Sandholm.

She and her mother were deported to Uzbekistan last year, but recently Amal and her mother came back to Denmark

where they are living together all three now in Center Sand-holm.

Amal’s mother says she cannot stay in Uzbekistan because of problems with family and police. But the Danish authorities have rejected her case. The big prob-lem now is about the little girl. If the mother will be deported a second time to her home coun-try what about Amal? Will she

stay with her father in Denmark or will she follow her mother? What is the future of this child? To live in Denmark with her father without her mother or to leave with her mother without her father?

I hope the Danish authori-ties will be compassionate and change their minds and let Amal and her parents stay together in Denmark.

New Times Summer 2015

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Transcript of New Times Summer 2015