Refugees: Integration Commissioner from Miesbach warns of "two-class society"
Created: 03/12/2022, 11:00 am
By: Sebastian Grauvogl
Integration is an ongoing task: the structures in the district have changed significantly since 2015, which could make it a little easier to take in and care for refugees today.
Our picture shows a meeting of the Asylum Forum in 2019. © Thomas Plettenberg
The willingness to help the Ukraine refugees is great in the district of Miesbach.
But there are also other people seeking protection here.
You shouldn't forget them, says Max Niedermeier.
County
– More than two million Ukrainians have already left their homeland after the Russian attack – and the number is increasing every day.
The first war refugees have also arrived in the district of Miesbach.
Scenes that make some think of the great refugee movement in 2015.
In an interview, the district's integration officer, Max Niedermeier, explains whether the current situation is comparable to what it was then and how the district is prepared for the new wave.
Mr. Niedermeier, after the large refugee movement in 2015, the issue of integration has recently ceased to be an acute one. Did you expect it to be as topical as it is now?
Max Niedermeier:
No, at least not with such force.
But who could have assumed that war would break out in Europe?
In view of the dramatic events, it is only logical that the Ukrainians should flee their homeland.
However, I have to disagree with one point in your question: the integration work has never become less acute or less important over the years.
She just disappeared from the general public.
Even today, around 500 refugees live in our district who need to be cared for.
Corona certainly hasn't made this any easier.
Because personal contact with the refugees was no longer possible?
Max Niedermeier:
They were at least made more difficult, yes.
At least as missing was the contact between the volunteers.
They get to see the fate of the refugees up close, which really gets to them.
It's not enough just to say thank you for their commitment on the screen.
They also need personal encouragement and recognition.
Does the new attention from the refugees from Ukraine and the associated wave of support from the local population help?
Max Niedermeier:
I think it's great and I'm very excited how many people are committed to helping the refugees from Ukraine.
At the same time, I hope that there will not be a kind of two-class society.
The Syrians, Afghans and Africans living with us have also fled their homes because they feared for their lives.
Often alone without their families and only with what they had on their bodies.
And with no prospect of returning because they continue to fear being persecuted.
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Max Niedermeier, integration officer for the district of Miesbach.
© Thomas Plettenberg
However, some citizens report that the fate of Ukrainians affects them more...
Max Niedermeier:
That is quite understandable.
A war has broken out in the Ukraine, and thus right on our doorstep, so to speak, and all the media are reporting on it with impressive images.
But do you know what's currently going on in Eritrea or Somalia?
In addition, the Ukraine is closer to us than some other countries of origin, not only geographically but also socio-culturally.
How frustrating does this frustrate the refugees from these countries already living here and the volunteers who have been caring for them for years?
Max Niedermeier:
They all touch the fate of the Ukrainians very much.
You can see what's going on there and you can sympathize with how people are doing.
The refugees are grateful for the support they have received from us and continue to receive.
However, one or the other helper is a bit surprised when he sees how many accommodations are suddenly being offered.
And that despite the fact that you yourself have been desperately looking for a place to stay for a recognized refugee family for years.
It also has to be said that many Ukrainians are only looking for accommodation for a reasonable period of time because they want to return to their home country as quickly as possible.
Max Niedermeier:
That is of course correct.
And again: The Ukrainians deserve our full support and I am infinitely grateful for everyone who is involved here.
But it is at least as important that this willingness to help does not end after a few weeks or months.
That is when the real integration work begins.
How worried are you that the mood could change? That was certainly the case after 2015.
Max Niedermeier:
But not for everyone!
Many of the volunteers from back then are still involved today, and new ones are constantly being added to the helper groups.
Thanks to the structures that have been created since then, some things have also become easier.
Above all, the responsible authorities have organized themselves much better.
So it was absolutely the right decision to place the central responsibility for accommodation with the local district offices.
And with the coordination of voluntary work at Caritas, which Lisa Richters takes care of with her full-time office, things are also much more professional in this area.
So they are no longer needed?
Max Niedermeier:
Apart from the fact that everyone is replaceable, as the integration officer for the district I have set myself a few more goals.
I would like to develop an integration concept that not only applies to refugees, but also to all other immigrants, and that will last over a longer period of time.
To this end, we brought the "Integration Network" with its long-time spokeswoman Lisa Braun-Schindler under the umbrella of the PIA eV (Pact for Integration and Work) association, of which I am the chairman.
Here we manage to make even better use of our close contacts – for example with schools, kindergartens, church communities or charitable organizations such as the Red Cross – for our work with refugees and immigrants.
How likely is it that they will also benefit from the willingness to help people from Ukraine?
Max Niedermeier:
Of course I hope that many of the new helpers will stay with us in the long term.
Because they feel how valuable this activity is and how much gratitude one gets in return.
Regardless of where the refugees come from.
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