"Upahl says no", "think of our children!" : along the road leading to this village in northern Germany, it is difficult to ignore the wooden signs whose large, brightly colored letters stand out against the gray sky.
For weeks, this town of some 500 inhabitants has been up against a project to set up an accommodation center for asylum seekers that can accommodate up to 400 people in containers.
As elsewhere in Germany, this rural district of Mecklenburg, the region where Upahl is located, is struggling to cope with the influx of refugees.
Last year, 217,774 asylum applications were filed in Germany, more than double the total for 2020, according to official data.
This is the highest number since the great migration crisis of the years 2015/16 when Syrians and Afghans fleeing war or persecution found refuge in Europe's leading economy.
Last year too, they came mainly from Syria where the war continues, followed by Afghanistan now in the hands of the Taliban, Turkey or Iraq.
And since the start of the Russian invasion on February 24, 2022, more than a million Ukrainians have gone to Germany. Even if they do not need to apply for asylum, their care increases the pressure on local communities.
"We have a situation that we can no longer cope with, like many other cantons and municipalities in Germany," Tino Schomann, the administrative manager of the North-West Mecklenburg district where gymnasiums have been requisitioned, told AFP. to receive asylum seekers.
Retired truck driver Bernd Wien, 66, who has lived in Upahl since 1980, is at the forefront of protest actions against the center which is due to open in March. "We just want to live quietly here, enjoy our retirement," he says.
"We have no barriers, no gate, we can ring other people's houses if we need something", testifies Jan Achilles, 46 years old and member of the municipal council.
The refugee center will change everything, predicts this analyst of environmental issues. When hundreds of "people, refugees or Germans or others, are piled up in one place, it creates problems", he says.
After months of appealing for help from local officials, Interior Minister Nancy Faeser met with them on Thursday, calling on each for "a joint humanitarian effort".
No concrete measures were announced after the meeting.
Reinhard Sager, head of the Association of German Districts, has called on Chancellor Olaf Scholz to take matters into his own hands.
"The municipalities are really doing an excellent job and the willingness of individuals to help is still great," said Mr. Sager.
But "it is urgent to relieve the pressure (...) which is considerable and increases day by day, week by week", he pleaded.
The office of Anika Reisch, a 38-year-old insurance agent, borders the land where bulldozers are already preparing to install the containers, in Upahl.
This mother of two children says she is full of empathy for the future occupants "who are traumatized, who are worried about the future".
But she is against their installation in a structure where "they have no privacy, where they cannot (...) face all that they have been through. It cannot be good for anyone".
The great migration crisis of 2015 marked the rise of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party. With its aggressive campaign against migrants, the party succeeded two years later in making a sensational entry into parliament.
In Upahl, far-right activists intruded among protesters, fueling fears that the current crisis could once again benefit the AfD.
"The general situation is ultimately much more dramatic than in 2015 due to war, inflation, economic crises and new refugees," said Hajo Funke, a political scientist at the University. free from Berlin.
With reception capacities exhausted in his region and between 20 and 30 new arrivals per week, Tino Schomann, the district manager, sees no other option than the Upahl center: "I need more place," he said.
16/02/2023 18:04:07 - Upahl (Allemagne) (AFP) - © 2023 AFP
