German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is apparently ready to face a vote of confidence and risk the collapse of his government if the cabinet’s new security package is not approved by the parliament.
According to various media reports, at a meeting of the Social Democrats’ parliamentary group on Tuesday, October 15th, several lawmakers expressed their concerns about the government’s plans to introduce new asylum and security regulations.
During the five-hour meeting, tensions ran so high that Scholz had to intervene, indirectly mentioning the vote of confidence as a last resort. He said that if an agreement were not reached, he would “use all his possibilities” to get it approved—some interpreted this as a threat to secure a majority in his own ranks.
If the security package is not approved by the parliament, he would hold a vote of confidence— participants of the meeting deduced—risking the collapse of his government, which also consists of the Greens and the liberal FDP party.
The security package, agreed on by the three coalition partners, would introduce a knife ban at festivals, sports events, and other similar public events, with exceptions in the catering sector.
The proposal to ban the carrying of knives in public was made after a terror attack in Solingen in August and the murder of a policeman in Mannheim in May, as well as a series of knife attacks in recent months in different parts of Germany, committed by mostly Afghan and Syrian migrants. Critics of the ban have argued that it is futile, as migrants, criminal gangs, and their culture are the ones responsible for knife crime, not the knives themselves.
In addition, the powers of the police force are to be expanded, as investigators will be allowed to use facial recognition software to identify terror suspects.
The package also stipulates that migrants who were previously registered in another EU country before coming to Germany and who have already been ordered to leave the country will have their social benefits reduced. The Solingen attacker should have been deported last year but because the immigration officers couldn’t find him on the day they were supposed to collect him, he was inexplicably allowed to stay in Germany and was granted ‘subsidiary protection’ and further social benefits.
The government wants to “remove hurdles” to quicker deportations, especially with regard to migrants who have committed serious crimes. In addition, if asylum seekers travel back to their home country, they could be denied further protection. There has been outrage over the fact that thousands of Afghan citizens who have claimed asylum in Germany have flown back to their home country for a holiday.
The attempt to seem strict on migration, including reinstating checks at Germany’s borders, comes after a shockingly poor performance of government parties at the regional elections in September in Thuringia, Saxony, and Brandenburg. The elections saw the rise of the anti-immigration right-wing AfD party, as well as a clear signal by the voters that they have had enough of the lax migration policies of the past.
However, the youth wing of the Social Democrats, Jusos, is still arguing that the security package is going too far by cutting benefits for migrants, calling the plans a policy against “human dignity.” Jusos leader Phillip Türmer said that “the fight against Islamism is being turned into a fight against refugees.” He accused Scholz of wanting to sideline his critics, saying “I hope that no one who wants to vote against the package will be intimidated.”
As Süddeutsche Zeitung reports, there is also some resistance from the Greens, while the FDP would like even tougher measures. After his party’s disastrous showing at the regional elections, FDP leader Christian Lindner issued an ultimatum to his coalition partners to change course on migration, or the FDP will leave the cabinet.
The security package will likely be voted on this week. The opposition centre-right CDU/CSU alliance has said it will reject it, saying that the proposals have been watered down and that illegal migrants should be rejected at Germany’s borders. The right-wing AfD party said that the package will not bring about substantive change because government politicians are more worried about keeping their jobs than about the security situation in Germany.
