Asylum and refugee protection

Hands of refugees reaching for an orange Hands of refugees reaching for an orange

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"Persons persecuted on political grounds shall have the right of asylum", according to Article 16a of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Germany, the 1949 Basic Law. Asylum law thus has a special priority in Germany. In Germany, unlike many other countries, the right of asylum is not only anchored in the 1951 Geneva Convention on Refugees; it is also enshrined in the Constitution as a fundamental right. It is the only fundamental right which is applicable only to foreigners.