Hearing
The competent cantonal authorities, or the Federal Office for Migraion (FOM) in special cases, question the applicants in detail on their claims. At these hearings, the asylum seekers have to present their grounds for persecution as precisely and comprehensively as possible. They are invited to support their accounts by producing documents. Critical in-depth questioning is aimed at revealing any possible inconsistencies. Interpreters and representatives of recognized relief organizations are present at these hearings. A protocol of the conversation is taken down and retranslated into a language understood by the asylum seeker. The statements are then checked by the FOM. The protocol of the hearing is an important element in the assessment of the asylum application.
Question: What did Mamadou B., Ahmed H. and Sadiye C. say at the second hearing?
After a short stay at the reception centre, a direct Federal hearing is held on 17th December at the FOM-Headquarter in Bern-Wabern. During this hearing, Mamadou B. is unable to draw Sierra Leone’s flag correctly. His answers do not provide any further information on his place of origin: «….I only know my village because I have never left it except to work in the fields», or «…as I didn’t go to school, I don’t know what denominations Sierra Leone’s currency is divided into…». On the basis of these additional vague answers, the official responsible for the asylum decision who is conducting the second hearing can already rule out Sierra Leonean origin. However, he does not yet know where Mamadou B. actually comes from. In order to guarantee an optimum enforcement following the decision on asylum, the official decides to send the file to the Analysis Section, where specialists from Mamadou B.’s region of origin can identify where he comes from as exactly as possible.
On 17th April, Ahmed H. undergoes his second hearing at the reception and procedure centre in Vallorbe. At this hearing, he is asked to give more detail on his grounds for flight. His answers, recorded in writing, correspond to those given at his first hearing at the reception centre. He lived in Mogadishu, always under poor conditions (without any education, thus with no means of earning his livelihood, not enough food and poor access to the medical infrastructure). The civil war in his country contributes to his needy situation. Why did he come to Switzerland of all places? An uncle of his lives in the Canton of Vaud.
On 1st July, Sadiye C. makes the following statement to an employee at the Migration Office in the Canton of Zurich: «Everyone tried to flee when the police intervened. Cetin, who was standing directly in front of me, and Fadime next to me, were unlucky too; they grabbed our arms and pulled us into waiting police cars. I think that about 40 of us were caught. Next to me in the car sat someone who kept staring at me, I was almost glad when we finally reached the police station .....». «The same questions, again and again: ‹Who is the leader of your group? How many members are there? Where do you get your weapons from? Who led the attack?› They tried to pin things on me which I had nothing at all to do with. At first they were friendly, one of them grinning stupidly, then they started to hit me … to threaten me. One of them started touching me all over, I screamed, cried (begins to cry). If a somewhat older man – his superior, I think – hadn’t suddenly turned up, I think something would have happened.» «...... in the week after my release from the police station on 14th November, I had to appear at court for the first time. On the advice of my lawyer, I didn’t comply with any further court summonses and went underground. The police came looking for me a few times. On learning that I had been sentenced to prison for several years on the grounds of supporting a party that was banned in Turkey, and fearing imprisonment, I left the country.»
