Atheist Refugee Relief (German: ''Säkulare Flüchtlingshilfe e. V.'') is a

non-governmental organisation A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an independent, typically nonprofit organization that operates outside government control, though it may get a significant percentage of its funding from government or corporate sources. NGOs often focus ...

founded in

Cologne Cologne ( ; ; ) is the largest city of the States of Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with nearly 1.1 million inhabitants in the city pr ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

in 2017 in defence of the

human rights Human rights are universally recognized Morality, moral principles or Social norm, norms that establish standards of human behavior and are often protected by both Municipal law, national and international laws. These rights are considered ...

apostates Apostasy (; ) is the formal disaffiliation from, abandonment of, or renunciation of a religion by a person. It can also be defined within the broader context of embracing an opinion that is contrary to one's previous religious beliefs. One who ...

and nonreligious people. The board consists of Rana Ahmad, Mahmudul Haque Munshi and Stefan Paintner. Further groups and associations were formed in

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

(2019),

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

(2019),

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

(2019),

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; ; Swabian German, Swabian: ; Alemannic German, Alemannic: ; Italian language, Italian: ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, largest city of the States of Germany, German state of ...

(2020) and

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

(2020).

Organization

Founding in 2017

Atheist Refugee Relief reports that the personal story of Rana Ahmad's flight from Saudi Arabia to Germany in 2015 has been the inspiration to form the relief organization and the wider support network. The

Giordano Bruno Foundation The Giordano Bruno Foundation (, abbreviated: gbs) is a Germany-based non-profit foundation under public law that promotes evolutionary humanism and the enlightenment. It was founded by entrepreneur Herbert Steffen in 2004 and was named after G ...

provided 10,000 euros in seed funding. In November 2017, Atheist Refugee Relief was presented to the public on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the

Central Council of Ex-Muslims Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...

Board

In 2020, the board of directors consists of Rana Ahmad,

Mahmudul Haque Munshi Mahmudul Haque Munshi born 1987) is a Bangladeshi blogger in exile, atheist humanist, and human rights activist. After getting asylum, he moved to Germany. He is a board member of the Atheist Refugee Relief. He writes on his own blog, Swapnokothok. ...

, and Stefan Paintner.

Members and supporters

The following refugees and activists spoke about their case in public, listed by country of origin: * Bangladesh:

* Iraq: Amed Sherwan, Worood Zuhair * Iran:

Mina Ahadi Mina Ahadi (, born 1956) is an Iranian-Austrian political activist. She is a member of the Central Committee and Politburo of the Worker-communist Party of Iran. Advocacy Mina Ahadi campaigns for citizens' rights and for legal systems based upo ...

, Mohamad Hosein Tavasolli, Farid Mahnad, Sina Nasiri * Mauritania: Yahya Ekhou * Pakistan: Muhammad Ajeef, Alia Khannum * Saudi Arabia: Rana Ahmad, Loujain Sultan *Syria:

Abdulrahman Akkad Abdulrahman Akkad (Arabic: عبدالرحمن عقاد) is a Syrian political blogger, public speaker, and human rights activist. He currently resides in Berlin. Biography Early life and education Akkad was born in Aleppo to Syrian Muslim p ...

*Egypt: Hisham Nofal The organisation has been endorsed by

Hamed Abdel-Samad Hamed Abdel-Samad (, ''Ḥāmid ʿAbd aṣ-Ṣamad'', ; born 1 February 1972) is a German-Egyptian author critical of Islam. Life Abdel-Samad was born as the third of five children, the son of a Sunni Muslim imam.Lale Akgün Dr. Lale Akgün (born 17 September 1953 in Istanbul, Turkey) is a German politician and member of the SPD. She served as an MP for Cologne II electoral district in the German Bundestag from 2002 to 2009. Life Lale Akgün's Turkish family ...

Richard Dawkins Richard Dawkins (born 26 March 1941) is a British evolutionary biology, evolutionary biologist, zoologist, science communicator and author. He is an Oxford fellow, emeritus fellow of New College, Oxford, and was Simonyi Professor for the Publ ...

and

Michael Schmidt-Salomon Michael Schmidt-Salomon (born 14 September 1967 in Trier) is a German author, philosopher, and public relations manager. As chairman of the Giordano Bruno Foundation, a humanist organization that is critical of religion, he has been identified a ...

Activities

Practical help

In Germany, the organisation offers practical help to refugees in their contacts with authorities, doctors and lawyers. It helps them find access to suitable language and integration courses, or physiological and psychological therapy after human rights violations. The organisation is in regular contact with politicians and state authorities. In the atheists' countries of origin, the organisation provides emergency humanitarian aid in acute crises for individuals and groups.

Information about countries of origin

The organisation states that in 13 countries worldwide (Afghanistan, Iran, Yemen, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritania, Nigeria, Qatar, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan and the United Arab Emirates) the human right to freedom of religion and belief is punishable by death on charges of

apostasy Apostasy (; ) is the formal religious disaffiliation, disaffiliation from, abandonment of, or renunciation of a religion by a person. It can also be defined within the broader context of embracing an opinion that is contrary to one's previous re ...

blasphemy Blasphemy refers to an insult that shows contempt, disrespect or lack of Reverence (emotion), reverence concerning a deity, an object considered sacred, or something considered Sanctity of life, inviolable. Some religions, especially Abrahamic o ...

. Moreover, prison sentences can be imposed in more than 40 countries.

Official perspectives

From the German government, several statements concerning Atheist Refugee Relief have been made and have been posted on the organisation's website, including

Bärbel Kofler Bärbel Kofler (born 24 May 1967) is a German politician of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) who has been a member of the Bundestag from the state of Bavaria since 2004. In addition to her parliamentary work, Kofler has been serving as Parliam ...

, Representative of the Federal Government for Human Rights Policy and Humanitarian Aid at the

Federal Foreign Office The Federal Foreign Office (, ; abbreviated AA) is the Foreign minister, foreign ministry of the Federal Republic of Germany, a federal agency (Germany), federal agency responsible for both the country's foreign policy and its relationship with ...

; Michael Blume, Representative of the State Government of Baden-Württemberg against Anti-Semitism; Serap Güler, State Secretary at the Ministry for Children, Family, Refugees and Integration of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia and

Doris Schröder-Köpf Doris Schröder-Köpf ( Köpf; born 5 August 1963) is a German journalist and politician. She was the fourth wife of former German chancellor Gerhard Schröder. Her articles have been published in newspapers and magazines including ''Bild'' an ...

, State Commissioner for Migration and Participation of the State of Lower Saxony.

References

{{reflist

External links

Official Website
2017 establishments in Germany Anti-Islam sentiment in Germany Atheist organizations

Organization

Founding in 2017

Board

Members and supporters

Activities

Practical help

Information about countries of origin

Official perspectives

See also

References

External links