Bremen (dpa) – The federal state of Bremen is calling for a change in asylum law in order to recognize the consequences of climate change as a reason for fleeing.
“Anyone who has to leave their homeland because of climate and environmental changes is currently not covered by protective instruments such as the Geneva Refugee Convention,” said Bremen’s Integration Senator Anja Stahmann (Greens). However, according to the UN Human Rights Committee, climate refugees should not be denied a right to asylum if their lives in their homeland are in danger.
By 2050 more than 200 million climate refugees
At their conference in Hamburg, the integration ministers of the federal states are discussing a motion by Brandenburg and Bremen on the subject entitled “Recognize climate change as an obstacle to deportation”. Stahmann referred to figures from the United Nations, according to which more than 200 million people worldwide would be driven from their homes by 2050 as a result of climate change. The international community is called upon to make fundamental changes in migration and asylum law.
Special responsibility of Germany
As a highly industrialized country, Germany has greenhouse gas emissions that are well above average in a global comparison. The Federal Republic must therefore live up to its special responsibility by campaigning for an adaptation of international legal standards such as the Geneva Refugee Convention and also supplement its own asylum law with climate impact reasons for fleeing.
–
