Germany will take more asylum seekers but no tolerance for law breakers

By Alla Shali

Armin Laschet, deputy chairman of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democratic Party (CDU), warned of tough consequences -– including deportation – for asylum seekers who violate German laws, following sexual attacks on women on New Year’s Eve in which recent immigrants are suspected.

In an interview with Rudaw on Tuesday, Laschet said Germany would continue to take in asylum seekers from war-ravaged Syria, explaining that the majority of migrants had denounced the attacks and only a fraction had been involved in the violence, which has provoked both pro- and anti-immigration sentiments in Germany. Here is Rudaw’s interview with one of the top people in Merkel’s party.

Rudaw:  The attacks in Cologne sent shockwaves in Germany, shaking both the establishment and the public. Who is responsible for what happened there, and is the interior minister blaming police by removing the police chief?

Armin Laschet: The interior minister is also in charge of the police in the state and has responsibility in terms of state security. This means that he is accountable for what took place in Cologne. It is also his responsibility to ensure the security of migrants in the state.  So, there are victims on both sides. If he would say that this was only the police’s fault and he had nothing to do with it, I don’t think that would be a good sign.

The German government is now seeking to toughen deportation laws for migrants who violate German laws. How do you see this?

This law will not apply to the majority of asylum seekers, since the absolute majority among them has fled violence and insecurity.  They want to start a new life here in Germany. But the small number of those who are involved in wrongdoings will face this law and be deprived the right of migration. They will be deported to their countries. Anyone who wants to live here permanently must respect the law and respect our culture.  That has not been said this clearly before, but this law will express it clearly now.

But if asylum seekers have no nationality or passport, how can you deport them?

The question is where the person comes from, and what agreements we have with the country the person comes from. For instance, with North African countries like Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco we do have agreements. And most of the accused have come from these countries. So, we can deport them. But it will be problematic when it comes to dealing with those who come from war-torn countries. It won’t be easy. Still, the number of those who have such a situation is small. We intend to solve the problems through changing the laws, and we need to even investigate the individual cases. How do we approach it? We think tough laws are needed.

The government on the one hand seeks to solve the issue of accommodation for the migrants, and on the other hand it tries to toughen the laws regarding migrants. Which is a more urgent need for Germany at this time?

Both are needed, tough law for the very few numbers of the violating migrants and at the same time we need good accommodation for the rest of the asylum seekers. They need to be able to study and work in their own professions and develop. They need to be supported to find their position and chance in the labor market. This is very important for the migrants. I am also very glad that most of the migrants raised their concern and denounced what took place on New Year’s Eve in Cologne.

But Chancellor Merkel is under fire after the attacks, with media outlets in America, for instance, saying that Merkel needs to resign after what happened in Cologne.

Many things are said and published in America. But of course Mrs. Merkel’s migrant policy is to reduce the number of refugees through international cooperation and at the same time help those migrants who need to be helped. This is why both within the federal parliament and among the German public, there is a wide support for Mrs. Merkel’s policy.

It is often said that Germany cannot cope with a million refugees, as the states and municipalities are under heavy pressure. Will Germany take in more refugees, despite all the obstacles?

We cannot take in one million refugees every year, but as long as the war in Syria continues, we will give asylum to those who need to be helped. This is why we say that the number of migrants should decline, but the laws of migration and seeking asylum will remain as they are.