Led by Open Doors Germany, a group of NGOs has requested the country's federal and state governments put an end to the 'integration experiment' of putting Christian and Muslim refugees together. The group noted that Christians and other religious minorities continue live in an "unbearable" situation where they are targeted for their beliefs.
At the Future Conference on Integration and Migration, Germany's Home Secretary, Thomas de Maizière, stated that the role of religion had been "underestimated."
As World Watch Monitor reports, in September last year, German Chancellor Angela Merkel declared that any Syrian who reached Germany could claim asylum there. Her offer was partially based on the Biblical principles of welcoming the stranger and those in need.
Following this declaration, around a million people have migrated into the country. In March 2016, the head of Germany's migration office disclosed that nearly 400,000 immigrants had not applied for asylum. Several people have been put up in temporary shelters. And the problems of freedom of religion in countries like Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan seem to have followed these refugees.
In a recent incident, upon his arrival, a new refugee was shocked to discover these words written on the wall in his refugee shelter: "The time has come to cut off the heads of all non-believers!"
"In Iran this may happen, but I never expected such a thing to happen in Germany. This has shattered my trust," the man confessed.
According to a report titled 'Lack of protection for religious minorities in Germany,' published by the group of charities, which includes Open Doors Germany, Action on Behalf of Christians and the Needy, the Central Council of Oriental Christians in Germany and the European Mission Society, no measures for protection were taken although there were several warnings pointing to how the refugees belonging to minority faiths were being beaten up and threatened.
The report petitions the government and other agencies to ensure that effective protection is granted to Christian refugees and immigrants belonging to other religious minorities.