Dresden (dpa/sn) – The city of Chemnitz does not want to deport the family of Vietnamese Pham Phi Son, who has been living in Saxony for more than three decades, for the time being. The city administration said on Friday that they would be in contact with the family and their lawyer and coordinate how to proceed. This concerns, among other things, the question of how and in what period of time missing evidence of economic and linguistic integration can be provided. The family is supported by the Chemnitz Immigration Office.
The Saxon Refugee Council rated the announcement as “easy breathing”. “But we’re still a long way from the goal,” said club spokesman Dave Schmidtke of the German Press Agency. The hopes of the Vietnamese family have been dashed several times. You will continue to fight until the family has a secure right to stay. A demonstration for this purpose was planned in Chemnitz on Friday evening.
The fate of Pham Phi Son and his family attracted attention beyond Saxony’s borders. The father of a family came to the GDR in 1987 as a contract worker, later he was given permanent residence rights. However, because he had been back in Vietnam for more than half a year, thereby violating the requirements of the German authorities, he was threatened with deportation. Both parents work, the daughter should start school in the summer. The case is already in the courts and the country’s hardship commission. She had recently made another negative decision.
The Commission’s refusal to recognize the family as a case of hardship triggered protests and sharp criticism from the Left, Greens and SPD. The FDP even called for the commission to be dissolved.
