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By special correspondent Seznam Správ for Germany.
Scheinfeld looks like a typical Bavarian small town. Schwarzenberg Castle rises above the small but picturesque center with half-timbered houses. The town’s population, comparable to Unhoští in Central Bohemia, has three supermarkets, a small industrial area and also a commercial area typical of smaller towns.
In the parking lot at the entrance to the city, a yellow and white sign reads “Flowers of Marlen”. A little off the beaten track, the flower shop is the last shop at the intersection. The other shops are empty.
In its place there is now a container refugee center on the former parking lot. According to available information, 280 people were crammed there by the end of 2023. There are similar centers scattered across a number of German municipalities. The residents of some of them are already strongly opposed to such establishments on their territory.
They claim their cities are overcrowded. And Bavaria’s Prime Minister Markus Söder confirmed it. “Germany has reached the limit of its ability to integrate. “A fundamental change in asylum policy is necessary,” the Süddeutsche Zeitung website quoted the Prime Minister as saying in mid-January.
Last year, 330,000 new arrivals in Germany applied for asylum, primarily from the Middle East and Africa. Some federal states, especially Bavaria, where the number of asylum applications exceeded 50,000 last year, are reporting overload and are calling for asylum reform.
Many migrants flock to Bavaria because it is a large and wealthy state. “In Germany, the general distribution of refugees is regulated by the so-called Königstein Key, which is intended to ensure a fair distribution of those seeking protection across the federal states. How many asylum seekers the federal state has to accept is recalculated every year. The basis for this calculation is tax revenue and the number of inhabitants,” explained Bavarian CSU MP Karl Straub to Seznam Zprávám.
The refugees try not to escape
But back to Scheinfeld. The local emergency shelters in containers may seem inconspicuous behind a curtain in the parking lot, but the local people are very happy about them.
“What can we tell you,” laughs a young couple who are standing smoking in front of a house on the other side of the intersection. They don’t say the names of the man and woman, but it is said that they are vintage cars. “In recent years there may have been no available apartments or houses to rent here. “Everything is full,” says a man in his thirties wearing a sweatshirt and jeans after a moment’s hesitation.
“Now I pay 550 euros in rent, before it was less,” repeats his girlfriend.
There is another thing that bothers me personally. It is said that peace has disappeared from the city. Shortly after midday, Scheinfeld almost seems sleepy; we can count the people we pass on the street on one hand. The village is quiet, only a car drives by every now and then.
We see asylum seekers walking through the city with a plastic bag from a nearby supermarket or smoking in front of the guarded entrance to their dormitory. Most of the time he’s staring at the ground, obviously trying not to get out of the way.
People are disturbed by the noise in the evening
“They make noise, especially in the evenings. “There’s been a lot of knocking on my windows at night, it’s very annoying,” murmurs the petite blonde as she throws a cigarette into the ashtray next to the door.
On the way through the city we also make a stop on the other side of the factory, which is dominated by the large logo of the well-known sports company Adidas. Behind the fence, two huge footballs of the same brand decorate the factory premises. The factory mainly produces high-quality and personalized shoes for professional athletes.
At her place we meet one of the few locals who are in the city at lunchtime. When he finds out what we’re interested in, he refuses to reveal his name or be photographed. According to him, the situation in the village is complicated. They say they don’t even know about some of the refugees. “I know that there are three refugee women from Ukraine on our street. “There are no problems with them at all, they go to work calmly,” he says.
Photo gallery in Scheinfeldu:
Photo: Michal Šula, Seznam Zpravy
When asked about the people from the container city, he just smiles sheepishly. “The biggest problem with them is that they walk in groups of five or six men and sometimes shout at women, which is not pleasant.” Even my friend, when she walks the dog in the evening, stays near the house and leaves no more,” he emphasizes.
Do the residents of Scheinfeld at least appeal to local politicians? “No, I think they’re doing what they can. “This needs to be resolved at a higher level,” agreed the aforementioned couple. The man we meet in the factory is said to have no interest in politics and therefore cannot judge it.
It has to be solved at the top, say local politicians
They also want to build a village for asylum seekers in nearby Dietersheim, a village with about 900 residents. It will accommodate around a hundred refugees. Both the local town hall and residents were against it. So for now you are waiting to see what will happen next. The regional television Bayerischer Rundfunk reported on this.
The News contacted the mayor of Scheinfeld via email, but he did not respond at all. The editorial team also addressed representatives of individual parties represented in the Bavarian state government.
Thomas von Sarnowski, chairman of the Bavarian Greens, who are in opposition in the Bavarian state government, confirms that the fundamental decisions are higher than in the regions. “The federal government decides on fundamental migration and asylum policy in Berlin,” he said.
Karl Straub, a member of the state council of the ruling CSU, told Seznam Zprávám that both rural areas and large cities had problems. “Our structures are now reaching their limits and we need an integration limit, especially in the area of illegal migration,” he noted, adding that it is necessary to make integration “humane for everyone involved.”
Demonstration in support of migrants
In recent days there have been demonstrations in support of foreigners in Germany. People reacted to the findings of German investigative journalists who reported on a right-wing extremist meeting in Potsdam. The so-called remigration was discussed there. Right-wing extremist supporters use the term to describe efforts to force people with a migration background to leave Germany. This sparked violent protests.
“We receive calls for help almost every day from Bavarian communities that no longer know how to deal with the large number of immigrants,” admits the press department of the Free Voters, whose members are part of the electoral coalition.
According to the leader of the Bavarian Green Party, the lack of financial resources for the integration of immigrants is leading to dissatisfaction among local people. He says Bavaria needs extraordinary financial aid for individual municipalities.
Anyone who helps refugees should get more money
“If you take in more refugees, you should also get more money. The state government here in Bavaria has failed in recent years. Counties, cities, communities and volunteers do an incredible amount for refugees,” said von Sarnowski in his answers to Seznam Zpravy. He called the people who help with integration in the region heroes.
He also sees language courses for everyone as a basis, because “language connects us and enables integration,” but also faster issuing of work permits and faster asylum procedures.
“We will be one of the first federal states in Germany to introduce the asylum card as a payment card in February 2024 to prevent misuse when making cash withdrawals,” said the press department of the Free Voters.
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