Merz calls for stricter migration policy after a knife attack in Aschaffenburg

Merz calls for stricter migration policy after a knife attack in Aschaffenburg

Aschaffenburg, Deutschland - Friedrich Merz, the CDU's candidate for Chancellor, called for a sharper migration policy after a knife attack in Aschaffenburg. In the Bundestag, two applications for his party for migration were discussed and coordinated on January 29. A graphic brought by Merz, which was shared on LinkedIn, shows a decline in violent crime between 2007 and 2019, despite an increase in the proportion of migrants. However, this raises questions, because experts such as Christian Walburg from the German University of German University point out that violent crime may have been influenced since 2022 by social framework conditions and the aftermath of Corona pandemic.

Walburg also warns that the graphic could be misleading because acts of violence are higher among refugees than among locals. The sociologist Gina Wollinger also emphasizes that violence is not imported and that hate crime in Germany is increasing. In most cases, violent acts are done in the social navigation, mainly among acquaintances and not by strangers. However, Walburg emphasizes that very few refugees commit severe violent acts and calls the generalizations in the debate problematic.

political demands and resistance

also expressed the demand for the expulsion of delinquent foreigners and the withdrawal of German citizenship for double nationals in crimes. These proposals met with resistance from the SPD, the Greens and FDP, which signal that the withdrawal of citizenship could be unconstitutional. Merz had originally sought not to make migration the main topic of the election campaign, but was faced with various challenges.

In the current political discussion, Merz emphasizes that 80% of the over 200,000 naturalization applications in 2024 want to keep original citizenship. He criticizes the reform of the State Conservation Act by the traffic light coalition and speaks out for the discretion of German citizenship among delinquent double nationals. Experts emphasize that this could raise constitutional problems because Article 16 of the Basic Law prohibits the withdrawal of nationality against the will of the citizen.

migration crime in the context

The discussion about migration and crime also shows that a small part of the migrants becomes punishable, but the statistical recording is often misleading. According to [BPB], migrants in total are more likely to be criticized with crimes than non -migrants. The age and gender composition as well as stressful living conditions can play a role here. Adult migrants with access to the labor market relatively rarely.

In addition, it is determined that conflicts can lead to higher violent crimes in shared accommodation and previous violence experiences in refugees. Studies also show that youth crime tends to be increased among migrant families, but is limited to a small minority. The social context and the possibilities for integration are crucial for crime development.

Overall, it can be seen that the sharpening of the migration policy and the associated proposals from Merz and the CDU do not only have to lead in the desired direction. A policy that stigmatizes migrants could endanger their integration in the long term and possibly lead to an tightening of social problems.

Kreiszeitung | LTO | BPB