Germany Final Stop: Munich Airport

August 15, 2011

Comment: The article at hand gives an overview on how unaccompanied minors, arriving at Munich airport are being taken care of by the local government of the city of Erding, Bavaria. It is this city’s Youth Welfare Office which is in charge of taking care of the children making it to the capital of Bavaria.

The article states that since January 2011, 27 unaccompanied minors have been identified by the airport border control. Upon identification, the 16 to 18-year olds are sent to an initial reception centre for adult refugees. Minors below the age of 16 however, may evade this highly controversial placement and are taken to youth welfare establishments instead. There they are attended by medical and educational staff on a regular basis. They receive support with issuing official documents, have a daily routine and may learn German.

For the current year, the District Office of the city of Erding predicts spendings as high as 1,3 million euros. These are just temporary costs though, since they are fully reimbursed by the State of Bavaria. However, the Erding Youth Welfare Office is not compensated for its personnel costs, which amounted to 120,000 euros in 2010. The city’s Youth Department is currently in charge of the care of 40 unaccompanied minors.

Niels Espenhorst, representative of the German National Association for Unaccompanied Minors, fears that the government of Upper Bavaria will continue to randomly send unaccompanied minors to establishments where space is available. He advocates for the 16 to 18-year old unaccompanied minors to be sent to youth welfare establishments as well. He states that this would even be cheaper, since here the personnel costs are fully covered by the State of Bavaria, whereas they are not for initial reception centres for adults.

Though Bavarian Youth Welfare Centres seem to be commendable institutions, Art. 1 CRC nonetheless provides that a minor is anyone below the age of 18 for whom State parties must ensure the survival and development to the maximum extent. Therefore, unaccompanied minors between the age of 16 to 18 should not be placed in establishments for adults where little or no support is provided by qualified personnel. Unaccompanied minors come from unstable living environments and are in great need of proper and sensitive care. Rather than being a question of the space available, the placement system should be based on the particular needs of unaccompanied minors. It should be guaranteed that they are being properly protected owing to the risks that lie in their vulnerability, an argument that can be found in the current article where child protection concerns are well addressed.

Comments: Olga Herzenberg, Regional Office for Central and South Eastern Europe, Terre des homes- Child Relief