Protests in Hamburg: deportation of activist Mehmet Çakas is imminent!

Protests in Hamburg: deportation of activist Mehmet Çakas is imminent!

Current protests against deportation in Hamburg

In the Hanseatic city of Hamburg, activists are currently regularly taking to the streets to protest against the threatened deportation of Mehmet Çakas. According to a report by ANF, the aim of the campaign is to draw attention to the dangers that the Kurdish activist must expect if he returns to Turkey. Çakas, who was convicted in Germany for his membership in the PKK, is currently in the Uelzen correctional facility and is fighting the threat of repatriation to a country where he is at risk of political persecution.

The Lower Saxony Refugee Council, supported by organizations such as RAV, Rote Hilfe and KON-MED, is appealing to the state government to stop the deportation. Cansu Özdemir, foreign policy spokeswoman for the Left, has already submitted a written request to the BAMF to shed light on the circumstances of Çakas' asylum procedure and to review its appropriateness. The protest on Mönckebergstrasse was not only a sign of discontent, but also a platform to inform the public about the dangers of criminalizing Kurdish interests.

Political persecution and legal hurdles

But Mehmet Çakas' situation reflects a larger issue. He was sentenced to two years and ten months in prison in April 2024 because, according to the Celle Higher Regional Court, he is said to have organized activities for the PKK. While the BAMF does not see the conviction as a reason to reassess the risk of persecution, the Lower Saxony Refugee Council criticizes the assumption that Turkey can guarantee a fair asylum procedure. The concerns are not unfounded: After the attempted coup in Turkey in 2016, more than 500,000 investigations were initiated against opposition figures, and many people were imprisoned or convicted.

Lawyer Dündar Kelloglu is clear: A deportation to Türkiye would mean a real danger for Çakas, as he would have to expect political persecution. Legal opinions from PRO ASYL support this view and show that in Turkey criminal proceedings are often used to suppress political opinions, further increasing the uncertainty of fair treatment.

Right to stay for persecuted Kurds

The debate about the deportation of Çakas also raises the question of how Kurdish refugees are dealt with in Germany. An example of this is the case of Aras, another Kurdish activist, whose asylum application was also rejected in Germany, even though he is under threat in Turkey. The similarity in their fates is worrying: both activists are the focus of the Turkish justice system, and there are fears that a return to Turkey could have far-reaching consequences for their security and human rights.

Background: The BAMF has repeatedly assessed the risk of persecution for Kurdish refugees in Turkey as insufficient, which leads many to question whether this assessment corresponds to reality. One could say that the system is failing them, while the danger that threatens them is real and concrete. The protests in Hamburg and the demands for a fair asylum procedure for Mehmet Çakas are therefore more than just calls for immediate protection; they are a powerful sign of the support and solidarity these activist efforts require.

With the next protest in Hanover on Saturday at 2 p.m. at the main train station, the activists are continuing their fight for the right to asylum and against unjustified deportations.

The situation remains tense and it remains to be seen what steps the judiciary and politicians will take next to counteract this worrying development.