Satisfaction for husband after pregnant Syrian woman denied help
Published: Friday, Nov 22nd 2024, 13:10
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The Federal Supreme Court has partially upheld the appeal of a Syrian refugee family returned from Brig VS to Italy in 2014. The Swiss border guards refused to provide medical assistance to the woman, who was pregnant at the time and suffering from pain. The man has now also been awarded compensation as a direct victim.
The wife was 27 weeks pregnant at the time and was suffering from increasing pain on arrival in Brig. Despite repeated requests from the husband, the border guards did not seek medical help. After the family arrived in Italy, the unborn child was found dead in hospital.
The family then lived in Italy for around two years until the woman was able to travel to Germany with the children in 2016 and stay there. The husband was able to join her in 2021. In 2021, the Federal Department of Finance rejected the family's request for compensation and damages. Following their appeal, the Federal Administrative Court awarded the woman CHF 12,000 in compensation.
The Federal Supreme Court partially upheld an appeal by the family in a ruling published on Friday. It also awarded the husband compensation. This amounts to 1000 francs.
Helpless and powerless
The man is also to be considered a direct victim of the events in Brig, the court writes. He had had to watch for several hours as his wife was not given any help. His efforts to obtain support from the border guards were ineffective.
According to the verdict, the man had to carry his wife to the train and into the carriage together with relatives. He had spent several hours in fear for the life and health of his wife and unborn child. The inactivity of the border guards also put him in a special situation of powerlessness and helplessness, as the family was in the care of the state.
The man's mental integrity had thus been unlawfully violated, although no prolonged mental impairment had been proven.
Border guard sentenced
The Federal Supreme Court denied the family's claim for satisfaction and compensation in connection with the asylum procedure in Italy. In particular, they had claimed lost support services in this regard.
The border guard in charge of the operation was convicted of assault in 2018. He was acquitted of the other charges - such as attempted intentional homicide or attempted grievous bodily harm - as it could not be established whether the child was still alive when the mother arrived in Brig. (Judgement 2C_1016/2022 of 25.9.2024)
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