Afghans hold hunger strike for refugee status

Thirty Afghans occupied the Szent István Basilica in Budapest for a few hours on Wednesday in order to begin a hunger strike to press their demands for refugee status.

They abandoned their protest at 7.30 p.m. after talks with an Immigration Office official.

The abbot of the church notified Fifth District police and then locked the hunger strikers in the church.

Police arriving on the scene notified Immigration Office personnel, whose negotiations with the Afghans bore fruit by 7.30 p.m. The fifteen men, nine women and six children then walked out of the building, boarded a bus and were driven back to the Debrecen refugee camp.

István Ördög, head of refugee affairs at the Immigration Office, told reporters that the Afghans had occupied the Basilica because they thought that it would be a safe haven for them. He said the Afghans had not broken any rules, as inmates of the Debrecen camp may leave it for up to 24 hours.

Titular abbot György Snell told HírTV that the Afghan group had arrived in the afternoon with blankets and asked for no assistance. He said they behaved in an orderly fashion.

During negotiations the Afghans said they are dissatisfied with their living circumstances, and several of them spoke of personal grievances. The refugees will be questioned in Debrecen today, and will be assessed on a case-by-case basis.

Afghan internees climbed a 30-metre tower at the Debrecen camp last year in order to press their claims for refugee status.

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