Germany’s ruling ‘traffic light coalition’ is facing internal conflict over its bold plan to use British infrastructure in Rwanda to settle illegal migrants, in an attempt to appease voters on the right.
Concerned politicians have suggested that Germany could revive the plan, which was scrapped by Britain’s Labour government, in a move seen as an attempt to win back support after the far-right AfD party won its first state election earlier this month.
But the attempt to gain more support has alienated left-wing parties. The Greens, the centre-left SPD and the liberal FDP fiercely oppose the plan, arguing it is illegal and expensive.
“Even if we go ahead with it, it would mean that the entire asylum system in Germany – and other European Union countries – would be dependent on one dictator in Rwanda. In effect, the EU would be in the hands of (President Paul) Kagame,” Green Party MEP Erik Marquardt told reporters. i.
Concerns about immigration have become prominent in German politics after a series of Islamist attacks in the country in recent months, the most recent of which was at a Christian gathering in Solingen late last month.
Far-right protesters hold a banner reading “Remigration Now” as they march through the streets of Solingen, following a stabbing, on August 26
A 26-year-old Syrian man, suspected of the attack in Solingen, is escorted by the police on August 25
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz visits the scene of the knife attack on August 26
Protesters display a banner reading ‘AFD ban now’ during a demonstration in Erfurt, 1/9
The German government is under increasing pressure to respond to migration as support for the AfD grows in the east.
The far-right party achieved its first-ever victory in the state elections in Thuringia on September 1 and finished a close second in neighboring Saxony.
The German party Brandmauer, literally ‘firewall’, is a coalition agreement not to form an alliance with the AfD. It is still in place to prevent the party from coming to power. However, support for stricter migration measures continues to fuel the far right, at the expense of the SPD, FDP and the Greens.
Post-election polls show that asylum and migration are the two most important issues for Germans nationwide. The support for the party is genuine and not a protest vote. This increases the pressure on the coalition government to act.
“The problem is not migration. It is Islamism,” Mr. Marquardt told i.
“Our approach is to try to find solutions. And the idea that there is one easy solution through one measure, like sending people to Rwanda, is simply wrong.
‘It is essentially populism, and that was the case in the UK as well. The British government decided to codify this populism into law, and that was a huge waste of money.’
German Migration Commissioner Joachim Stamp suggested last week that the country could use British developments in Rwanda for a similar plan.
He alleged that Russia and Belarus were deliberately pushing migrants into Western Europe to destabilize Germany and its neighbors.
“My suggestion would be that we focus on this group. It’s about 10,000 people a year,” he said. said in a podcast, adding that the deterrent effect of a Rwanda plan “could remove the motivation to come to the EU.”
Such a scheme would require changes to EU legislation on how asylum applications are processed.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz promised to ‘investigate’ the case for an asylum processing center abroad in November last year.
He stressed that any plan would be “in accordance with the Geneva Convention on Refugees and the European Convention on Human Rights.”
However, Scholz also realised that the plans would be accompanied by ‘a whole series of legal questions’.
A Rwandan government spokesperson welcomed the proposal, saying they were “happy to work with anyone who, like them, is looking for a long-term solution to the migration problem.”
Germany welcomed a more open migration policy under Chancellor Angela Merkel, which allowed more than a million asylum seekers to cross the border into Germany in 2015.
However, Poland agrees that Russia is using migration as a weapon and encouraging asylum seekers to cross the border into Central Europe. The number of attempted illegal border crossings from Belarus is also increasing.
As in other Western countries, the appeal of populist parties appears to be partly driven by the loss of well-paid jobs.
Volkswagen announced last week that it is considering closing factories in Germany for the first time in its 87-year history, warning that the European auto industry is in a “very… serious situation.”
The Hope Hotel in Rwanda, which was willing to take in asylum seekers from the United Kingdom
A far-right supporter wearing a shirt of the far-right small party Der Dritte Weg (The Third Way) takes part in a protest in Solingen on August 26
Rwandan President Paul Kagame speaks at the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in Beijing on September 5
“The economic environment has become even more difficult and new competitors are entering the European market. In this environment, we as a company must now act decisively,” said CEO Oliver Blume.
The announcement marked a reversal of promises not to cut jobs in Germany until at least 2029.
The AfD also received support for its critical stance on German aid to Ukraine.
Germany has been one of the largest donors of aid to Ukraine since the outbreak of the war.
But concerns over spending have given support to fringe parties that are not playing by the rules, despite the threat Russia poses to Europe.