Germany’s Conservative CDU party has announced it was taking a tougher course on illegal immigration into the country.
That included push-backs at the German border – even if these went against EU law.
CDU leader and candidate for chancellor Friedrich Merz, told journalists on January 23 that he had decided on five policy measures to which any future coalition partner would have to agree.
The CDU is polled to win the general election on February 23 but will need a partner for a majority in parliament.
The announcement came a day after an illegal Afghan immigrant allegedly stabbed a baby boy and a 41-year-old man to death in Aschaffenburg, Germany.
Merz said the attack showed “a new quality of completely unhinged brutality”.
He said he would not accept that violent deeds like those in Aschaffenburg, Magdeburg, Solingen or Mannheim should be the new normal in Germany.
Merz said he had therefore decided on five measures that he would immediately be put into place if and as soon as he was chancellor. If necessary, he said he would use “special competences” the German Constitution granted a chancellor to issue directives.
The five measures are:
- An immediate introduction of permanent controls on all German borders and push-backs of all immigrants without legal documents for entering Germany. This would amount to a de facto “entry ban”, Merz said. He continued that the entry ban would also expand to people with a right to protection under EU law. “Dublin and Schengen are visibly dysfunctional. Germany must therefore use its right for the primacy of national law”, Merz told reporters.
- The German Federal Police should get the right to apply for arrest warrants for people who are in Germany illegally. Currently, this right is reserved for the judiciary.
- Illegal migrants who are required to leave Germany should no longer be released from custody. They should remain in custody until they are deported. Merz wants to use empty military barracks and other federal buildings to house illegals until their deportation. According to Merz, currently there are only 750 places to keep illegals in custody – compared to more than 220,000 people who are legally required to leave the country.
- The German Federal Police should be allowed to conduct daily deportations on their own accord. Currently, deportations are a matter for the 16 German states.
- German residence law should be changed to allow dangerous illegals to be taken into indefinite custody until they leave Germany or are deported.
“I do not care who wants to walk this road with me politically”, Merz concluded.
“I will not take another route. And anybody who wants to walk with me must abide by these five points. There are no more compromises possible on this topic.”
His remarks were met with acclaim by many commentators. Maurice Remy, a German author, wrote he now “had hope” again.
Still, doubts remained as to whether the CDU would find the right coalition partner for its migration stance.
As the party has repeatedly said it would adhere to the “cordon sanitaire” and excluded a co-operation with the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, the only remaining partners were the Social Democrats (SPD) and the Greens, who have both been relatively soft on migration.
They were quick to criticise Merz’ demands. Konstantin von Notz, deputy faction leader of the Greens in the German Bundestag, said the plans were “neither productive not legally possible”.
SPD politician Rolf Mützenich said: “Supposedly strong words do not do justice to the pain of the victims.”
Others asked why Merz wanted to wait until after the election with his ambitious plan.
Ulrich van Suntum, a university professor and former AfD politician, wrote: “Even if Merz does not want to form a coalition with AfD, he could just introduce his five points plan into the Bundestag now.”
“It’s downright absurd not to do this just because the AfD might agree. After the election it will be much more difficult.”
It seemed that the CDU heeded such criticism. On January 24, the party confirmed that it would introduce its migration plan in the Bundestag in the coming week for a free vote.
