How many more are coming?

Family reunification: “We simply don’t know”

(Bild: Krone KREATIV/stock.adobe.com)

Vienna is currently suffering from the enormous influx of children from crisis areas. Has the situation possibly been misjudged?

Container classes are currently being built in Vienna. They are necessary because hundreds of children are arriving in the city every month as part of the family reunification program. How did the city miss this development? Why was it not prepared?

Open answer in the state parliament
This was also a topic in Vienna's state parliament this week. City Councillor for Integration Christoph Wiederkehr openly admitted during question time: "The family reunifications were not unexpected. Even before the pandemic, we assumed that the numbers would rise sharply." They had relied on the estimates of the International Red Cross, as the data at federal level was also "more than inadequate". The pandemic has caused many cases to pile up due to contact restrictions and closed foreign representations.

There is currently an exchange of data, at least for people who have received an entry permit or are still in the process. However, we do not know how many people have not yet received an appointment at the embassies, for example, and this number cannot even be estimated because we simply do not know.

Integrationsstadtrat Christoph Wiederkehr (Neos)

Bild: Martin A. Jöchl

Criticism from the ÖVP
There is criticism from the opposition. ÖVP integration spokesperson Caroline Hungerländer: "The city has run into disaster with its eyes wide open and should have taken appropriate measures much earlier."

The proportion of people entitled to asylum and subsidiary protection who make their way to Vienna after their protection status has been recognized(Bild: stock.adobe.com)

"We don't know how many more are coming"
And it could get even worse. Wiederkehr with a gloomy outlook: "We currently don't know how many have not yet received an appointment at the embassies. We can't even estimate this number of people - because we simply don't know."

The "flight" from the federal states
But this is not the only area where Vienna is still in the dark. The "flight" from the federal provinces to Vienna will also not decrease due to the "no" to the residence obligation. The "Krone" has the figures from the previous year. Alarming: three out of four persons entitled to asylum and subsidiary protection from Upper Austria make their way to Vienna after their protection status has been recognized (graphic). This is according to figures from the Austrian Integration Fund. This is despite the fact that German courses are also offered in the federal states. Vienna faces even greater challenges in this area.