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Germany: Death in detention

01 September 1999

On 28 August 19-year old Rachid Said committed suicide by setting himself on fire in his cell in the Bueren detention centre, near Hamburg. The Algerian refugee, who was arrested and detained for deportation last March, had been put in isolation after he allegedly took part in an argument after a televised football match. According to anti-deportation campaigners, the psychological pressure of isolation and constant threat of deportation drove him to set fire to his clothes and his bedcovers. Since the practical abolition of the right to asylum through the Asylum Act of 1993, more than 30 people have killed themselves whilst in detention or due to the threat of deportation. The use of isolation as a disciplinary measure to pacify refugees shortly before deportation is common practice in Germany's detention centres. The measure results in resistance through hunger strikes, suicide attempts and protests, often leading to severe injuries to those detained. These effects are largely ignored by the media.

Frankfurter Rundschau 1.9.99; Anti-Deportation campaign press release 8.9.99. - ifghh@mail.nadir.org