When the war in Ukraine broke out and hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians streamed into Germany, there was an outpouring of support. Now, Ukrainian refugees are increasingly taking a backseat to other migrants, with 1,700 told to leave their apartments in the Ore Mountains in Saxony to make room for newcomers.
The district office sent termination letters to Ukrainians occupying 650 apartments in the cities of Zschopau, Aue, and Marienberg, telling the tenants they would no longer have an apartment by July, which means they have just weeks to find new places to live.
These Ukrainians need to make way for migrants from Syria, Afghanistan, and Turkey who are currently undergoing asylum procedures, but the issue is that 90 percent of all available asylum housing is occupied.
The letter the Ukrainians received said that they were previously warned to find new apartments, writing: “For this reason, we hereby call on you to immediately find your own living space and to leave the apartment provided to you by June 15th at 12 p.m. From this date, we revoke the use of the apartment.”
Ukrainian war refugees are not covered by asylum seeker benefits but instead have access to the German “citizen benefit.” The downside of their status means they have to take care of their own housing accommodations.
Saxony remains what is perhaps the top stronghold of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, with polling putting the party at 34 percent. Parties to the right of the AfD, such as the Free Saxons, are also popular in the Ore Mountains.
“The Ore Mountains are also considered a stronghold of the right-wing extremist Free Saxons,” an unidentified source told Bild newspaper. “If tent cities come into rural areas now, it would give these right-wing extremist parties a boost.”
The influx of migrants across Germany has helped fuel the country’s housing crisis and led districts and state governments to plead with the federal government for more financial aid and solutions to the education and housing crisis.
