The migration debate in Germany is gaining momentum ahead of the elections in Bavaria and Hesse. Former Federal President Joachim Gauck sends a wake-up call. And he’s not the only one who cites Denmark as a role model.
Munich – People have almost forgotten that federal presidents sometimes say things that not everyone likes. When the first wave of refugees rolled into Germany in many special trains in September 2015 with the Syrian war, the president was named Joachim Gauck. And he gave a speech that caused a stir at the time: the sentence “Our hearts are wide, but our possibilities are finite” was particularly remembered. Especially since Gauck, as a Protestant theologian, was above moral doubts.
Migration debate in Germany: Gauck talks about “limitation strategy”
Almost eight years later, Gauck speaks out again. He is no longer in office, but the now 83-year-old is still being heard. And he has a message. Again with a basic tone that is unlikely to please the left-wing parties that once voted him into office. “We have to discover scope that we initially dislike because they sound inhumane,” says Gauck in “Berlin Direkt”.
You have to remain “open and inviting”, but you also have to take the concerns of the population seriously. Even if there is a “fear of a brutal-sounding policy of isolation or confinement” among the centrist parties. In any case, he thinks that “perhaps it is not morally reprehensible at all and is even politically necessary to pursue a limitation strategy.”
Gauck does not want to make any concrete suggestions to the parties. He’s concerned with the signal. A “new determination” and “new ways”, not “just turning the screws”. Governments must be willing and able to act.
Denmark as a role model: Gauck is looking towards Scandinavia
It is interesting that Gauck mentions Denmark, which is governed by social democrats. “The Danes have succeeded in pushing a national-populist party below three percent.” A few days ago, Lower Saxony’s Prime Minister Stephan Weil (SPD) named the Danes as a role model because they were “looking for new ways across party lines.” And Markus Söder also referred to his neighbors to the north in his press conference yesterday after the CSU board meeting.
But what actually happened in Denmark? Here too, an alliance governs under social democratic leadership. But his politics are classified by the SPD-affiliated Friedrich Ebert Foundation as a “new counter-movement to the prevailing liberal, pro-immigrant discourse of many social democratic parties in Europe”. This means that Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen won the election in November.
Dobrindt criticizes traffic lights – “Further incentives for illegal migration”
The direction is clear, even if implementation is not easy. The possibility of applying for asylum at the border or within the country is to be reduced to zero in the medium term. Among other things, Denmark wanted to set up reception centers for migrants outside Europe, for example in Rwanda – but the project is currently on hold. Migrants already living in the country need to integrate more. The country had previously classified parts of Syria as safe – the first in Europe to do so. The result: 23,674 asylum applications were submitted in Germany in July, and 180 in Denmark in July.
Alexander Dobrindt also finds this exemplary. “Denmark shows that decisive political action leads to limiting illegal migration,” the CSU regional group leader told our newspaper. “The traffic light, on the other hand, creates further incentives for illegal migration to Germany, while Denmark, led by the SPD, is putting up a clear stop sign for illegal migration.” A “real change of course” is now also needed in Berlin. (Mike Schier)
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