THE AFRICAN COURIER. Reporting Africa and its Diaspora! The African Courier is an international magazine published in Germany to report on Africa and the Diaspora African experience. The first issue of the bimonthly magazine appeared on the newsstands on 15 February 1998. The African Courier is a communication forum for European-African political, economic and cultural exchanges, and a voice for Africa in Europe.
A rejected Nigerian asylum-seeker about to be deported has died after jumping out of the window in Hainichen, near Chemnitz, in the eastern German state of Saxony, several newspapers have reported.
The 33-year-old man was to be deported to the Netherlands, where he ostensibly first lodged his asylum application in the EU. The police wanted to pick him up on Monday morning when the incident occurred.
According to the Saxony Regional Directorate, the man jumped abruptly from a balcony on the fifth floor from a height of 15 meters while packing his personal belongings. One of the police officers tried in vain to hold the man back by the arm during the jump, but was unable to prevent the fall.
Despite immediate medical assistance, the man succumbed to his serious injuries on the spot.
According to the police, there were no indications of mental illness on the part of the deceased.
The man was to be transferred to the Netherlands, which was responsible for examining his application for international protection under the Dublin Regulation.
The Dublin Regulation is an agreement between the EU countries, Iceland, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Norway. It determines which EU member state is responsible for the examination of an application for asylum submitted by persons seeking international protection under the Geneva Convention within the Union.
According to the Regulation, the country responsible for the examination of an asylum application is the one that the claimant first entered when they entered the EU or the one that gave them an entry visa.
Sola Jolaoso
