Refugee curfew set to be imposed in German town

Refugee curfew set to be imposed in German town
The decision follows clashes between young refugees and German far-right activists.
2 min read
16 September, 2016
A 7pm curfew and an alcohol ban is set to be implemented in Bautzen
A curfew is set to be imposed on refugees in Bautzen in east Germany after a fight between a group of around 80 far-right activists clashed with a group of 20 refugees.

Police said they attempted to separate the two groups in the town about 60km from Dresden - but the asylum seekers, mostly unaccompanied youths, waved wooden sticks and bottles, apparently leading responding officers to use pepper spray and batons against them.

Far-right activists are then said to have attacked an ambulance crew attempting to treat a wounded 18-year old Moroccan.

Bautzen is home to four asylum shelters. But the town is also home to the Pegida Movement, a nationalist, anti-Islamic, far-right movement founded in 2014.

A building constructed to house refugees was burned to the ground in the town in February amid growing tensions between host and refugee communities. Visiting the town a month later, German President Joachim Gauck faced verbal abuse when attempting to discuss the influx of refugees to the country.

Germany's federal police force says 700 attacks on asylum accommodation has taken place this year, including 57 arson attacks.

The mayor of Bautzen, Alexander Ahrens, has previously expressed hope that the town would not become a "playground" for far-right groups. East Germany has been considered a stronghold of neo-Nazi groups since long before the refugee crisis.

As a result of the confrontation, a 19:00 curfew is set to be implemented on young refugees in Bautzen, in addition to an alcohol ban, according to the BBC