In 2024 alone, three suicides and 32 suicide attempts among refugees were documented in Saxony – despite declining numbers of arrivals. Particularly affected were minors as well as people held in deportation detention and mass accommodation centers. This alarming record highlights the immense psychological strain many refugees in Germany face.
A report by the Saxon Refugee Council, published on May 22, 2025, emphasizes that isolation, lack of prospects, and past trauma often lead to severe mental health crises – with little to no professional support available. The situation is especially dire in Dresden’s deportation detention center, where multiple suicide attempts have been reported.
Beybûn Seker, chair of Pena.ger e.V., is quoted in the article, strongly criticizing the looming cuts to psychosocial care:
“We receive numerous reports from refugees struggling with suicidal thoughts or living in deep despair – often without any form of support. Cutting funding for psychosocial care now means putting lives at risk.”
Seker stresses the urgent need for multilingual, low-threshold, and culturally sensitive services – especially in the refugees’ native languages. The mental health of displaced people should not only be discussed in response to publicized tragedies, she says, but must be continuously prioritized as a basic requirement for a life in dignity.
➔ Read the full article by the Saxon Refugee Council here.
