German Protestant Church Group Provides Afghans With €100,000 to Sue German Government for Residency

Bishop Christian Stäblein, the refugee representative for the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD), a grouping of some 20 different Protestant churches, has committed €100,00 to support Afghans seeking to secure their residency in Germany.

In a statement, the bishop announced: “We are giving €100,000 from collections to the ‘Kabul Airlift’ to support the legal proceedings of those affected and to secure their humanitarian care.”

The NGO receiving the funds, “Kabul Airlift,” was backed by then-Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) to identify and facilitate the transport of tens of thousands of Afghans to Germany. Set up to evacuate those Afghans who had helped the German and NATO military during operations there, the system has since been abused extensively, with many using fake background to secure passage.

So far, 36,500 Afghan migrants have already entered Germany using this service. Those flows still continue to this day. During Baerbock’s tenure as Germany’s top diplomat, Afghans began arriving in Germany under this scheme despite protests from the German embassy in Islamabad. They indicated that many of the Afghans — including Pakistani spies — received visas for Germany even with fake passports, an action reportedly pushed by the Foreign Office.

Just yesterday, Tuesday evening, another 193 Afghans landed in Erfurt, Germany.

However, another almost 2,000 people are insisting on access to Germany and plan to sue for entry into Germany with the help of “Kabul Airlift.” These Afghans are mainly staying in Pakistan.

The Bundeswehr’s mission in Afghanistan concluded four and a half years ago.

While the initial focus was on flying in local staff who worked for German soldiers, the number of arrivals broadened to include more people seen by the NGO as “particularly at risk” but who never worked for the Bundeswehr. This has ballooned to tens of thousands of people.

Notably, Afghans have some of the highest rates of criminality in Germany of any migrant group.

Protestant churches in Germany, along with the Catholic Church, are notorious for their pro-migration stances, including funding pro-migrant boats. In addition, the churches have often served as “sanctuaries” where migrants issued with deportation orders are allowed to stay in what has become a major “asylum scheme.”

Berlin Bishop Stäblein defended the use of church funds for these lawsuits, stating: “They risked their lives for our values and interests, not least for freedom and the equal dignity of everyone, as well as that of their families. The Federal Republic of Germany has therefore guaranteed them protection and given them a binding commitment to accept them.”

The EKD’s support directly counteracts the current federal government’s policy to offer financial compensation to Afghans who are supposed to be admitted. This measure is designed to encourage Afghans to voluntarily give up their plans for admission into Germany with five-figure euro amounts and benefits in kind. According to the Federal Ministry of the Interior, 62 individuals have accepted this severance offer so far.

However, the EKD is resisting this policy, Stäblein calling the offer “unworthy.”

The bishop argued: “Anyone who takes human dignity seriously cannot seriously demand that people at risk exchange their safety, even their lives, for money.” He concluded that such offers are “intolerable for those affected, and they damage our own dignity.”