Reception centers full of asylum seekers from BiH

According to German media, Germany is the most attractive country for seeking asylum in the European Union. However, mass arrivals have begun to overwhelm the system, and reception centers in Berlin, the capital of Germany, are packed, reports the BiH news agency Patria (NAP).

Arrivals are mainly recorded from Eastern Europe, which increased by two-thirds in 2013, the largest increase in the last 14 years, although most of those seeking asylum have little chance of being accepted as political refugees. Since the end of 2010, there has been a constant increase in asylum seekers in Germany. Last year, they had a growth of 67 percent or 127,023 asylum seekers, and in January of this year, a record increase of 76.7 percent was recorded, according to data from the Migration Office.

Serbia is also on the list of countries whose citizens are seeking asylum, with more than 18,000 applications, an increase of 40 percent compared to 2012. Around 90 percent of them are Roma.

Many also come from BiH. Last year, an increase in arrivals of 104 percent was recorded, and from Kosovo 74.5 percent. Many also come from Russia, including Chechnya.

A Roma family of six from BiH lives in a one-room house on the outskirts of the German capital, in just 25 square meters. Leaving BiH, they left poverty and discrimination behind, and now they live in a room with one bed, a table, and a dilapidated couch.

Across the city, in the part that once belonged to East Berlin, people of 18 different nationalities live in a ten-room building that has been converted into a reception center for asylum seekers for more than two years.

- The capacity is 350 people, and we always have between 360-370 - says the director of the reception center, Brigit Bauer.

In rooms of 20 square meters, 4-5 people live, and the toilet and bathroom are shared.

- Many people from the former Yugoslavia found refuge in Germany during the war in the 90s. Now they are bringing their families in hope of a better life and see Germany as their last hope - states Bauer.

While waiting for a response to their asylum request, adults are entitled to a benefit of 134 euros, and children 80 euros per month, reports NAP.

There are currently 8,360 asylum seekers in Berlin, and the center's capacity is 8,100 people. According to the Berlin Office for Health and Social Affairs, they expect a new increase in asylum seekers this year. Although some centers lack adequate conditions and should have been closed already, due to the situation with a large number of asylum seekers, they had to keep them open.