Germans evicted to make room for Syrian refugees

Roughly 800,000 migrants from the Middle East and northern Africa are expected to relocate to Germany this year. (Image: CNN screenshot)

German authorities have come up with a unique way of making space for 800,000 incoming Middle Eastern migrants – evict natural-born citizens from their homes.

Two German women have been ordered by local municipalities to find new housing to replace the flats they've lived in for 23 and 16 years, respectively.

Gabrielle Keller, 56, from Eschbach, Germany, has until the end of 2015 to relocate, the Telegraph reported Tuesday. Bettina Halbey, 51, from the town of Nieheim, has until May 2016.

"I think it’s a scandal to throw tenants out of their apartments. I can’t see the sense of it," Keller told SWR television, the paper reported.

Eschbach's mayor, Mario Schlafke, defended the decision to the German newspaper Welt on Monday. He said the town must make room for 2,400 migrants, but it only has two buildings at its disposal.

"The council hasn’t taken a frivolous decision. The alternative would have been to set up beds in the gym," said Schlafke.

Although the town owns Eschbach's flat, it is not subsidized housing. She does pay rent, the Telegraph reported.

"Our backs are to the wall," said local councilor Claudia Geiselbrecht on Monday, Badische Zeitung reported.

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The town of Nieheim's decision to evict Halbey, a nurse, mirrors Eschbach's ordeal. She received an eviction notice September 1.

"I've muddled through sorrow and distress, and then I get this notice. It was like a kick in the teeth," she told Welt Sept. 24. "I was completely taken aback. I find it impossible to describe how the city has treated me."

German officials have also started printing Arabic copies of the nation's constitution to hand out to newly-arriving migrants from the Middle East and north Africa. Roughly 10,000 copies of the first 20 articles of the constitution have already been printed.

"I am convinced that the first 20 articles of our constitution are what shape our culture," said Vice-Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel on Wednesday, Reuters reported. Gabriel is also chairman of the Social Democrats Party.