As a 14-year-old, Joel from Ghana had traveled to Hamburg, Germany as an unaccompanied minor to live with his father and sister there. He went to school, learned to speak German and became integrated into his local community.

Four years later, Joel was told that he would have to be deported back to Ghana upon turning 18, as the West African country is considered to be a safe country of origin. 

This was four months ago, and Joel had eventually resigned himself to having to pack his bags.

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Preparing for the worst

Since that fateful day in March, when Joel received the letter of deportation, his case drew a great deal of attention, as deportation would have meant uprooting the young man — before even finishing high school.

This is why one of his teachers decided to launch an online petition alongside his classmates to draw attention to Joel's circumstances; Joel's teacher, Elif Basboga, praised the 18-year-old as "super-integrated," highlighting how he had learnt the German language quickly and was a hard-working student about to graduate.

Joel's classmates meanwhile had also distributed flyers throughout Hamburg to draw attention to the young Ghanian's fate.

By the end of last week, the passionate petition, to help keep Joel in Germany, had been signed by more than 100,000 people online.

"I initially had hoped that maybe 1,000 signatures would come together. That alone would have been great. But over 100,000 signatures – that's a whole other dimension," Basboga said.

A unique case with a unique decision

In the end, the campaign paid off: The so-called commission for cases of hardship (Härtefallkommission) in the city-state of Hamburg, which is tasked with investigating unique immigration cases, where all legal channels of redress and appeals processes have been exhausted, studied Joel's case in detail.

Examining moral and humanitarian considerations only, the commission finally issued a recommendation to approve the request to allow the 18-year-old to remain in Germany.

The decision of the four-member hardship commission in Hamburg comprises representatives of four different political parties; however, despite political differences on other issues between the parties, the decision in Joel's case was a unanimous one. 

"We are calling on the Senate (of Hamburg) to grant a hardship case so that he can get a residence permit," said the chairman of the commission for cases of hardship, Ekkehard Wysocki. 

A spokesperson for the local Foreigners' Office said that the recommendation had been successful, and that following the decision to accept it, "a residence permit will now be issued at very short notice." 

Also read: 'Finally back home': Returning to Ghana

Happy ending for Joel

Joel was notably moved by the turn of events in his favor. Had he been deported, his education would have stopped and he would have lost all the friends he had made in recent years.

It would also have meant permanent separation from his family, as he would have had to return to Ghana without his father and sister. 

"I can't even express my feelings. I didn't expect this," said the 18-year-old about the decision of the hardship commission.

He will now focus on finishing school before deciding what the future might hold next for him.

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with DPA