TGA detects 13,000 transportation violations in Makkah and Madinah last week    Expat doctor arrested for circulating offensive acts through social media    Agreement reached on safe navigation in the Black Sea as Riyadh talks conclude Saudi Crown Prince's leadership role in resolving crisis hailed    Saudi Arabia condemns Israel's bombing of Syrian town Koya    Madinah Emir opens new premium airport lounge    Saudi Arabia hold Japan to goalless draw in Saitama to stay in World Cup hunt    Trump's national security team's chat app leak stuns Washington    'Record' payout for world's longest-serving death row inmate    Millions of UK tires meant for recycling sent to furnaces in India    Tourism Ministry continues enforcing closure of erring hotels with slapping maximum fine of SR1 million    150,000 Umrah pilgrims benefit from hair cutting service to exit from Ihram during Ramadan    Lulu opens new hypermarket in Makkah, in its further expansion in Saudi Arabia    Aramco continues to explore opportunities for investment in China, says Amin Nasser    NewJeans announces hiatus after setback in court battle    Disney's Snow White film tops box office despite bad reviews    George Foreman, heavyweight champion and cultural icon, dies at 76    Court rules against K-pop group NewJeans in record label dispute    Zimbabwe's Kirsty Coventry becomes first female IOC president    Salem Al Dawsari strike lifts Saudi Arabia past 10-man China in Asian qualifiers    Harry's US visa records unsealed after drug claims    Grand Mufti rules against posting prayers and preaching in mosques on social media    King Salman prays for peace and stability for Palestinians in Ramadan message King reaffirms Saudi Arabia's commitment to serving the Two Holy Mosques and pilgrims    Bollywood star Saif Ali Khan 'out of danger' after attack at home in Mumbai    Order vs. Morality: Lessons from New York's 1977 Blackout    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Far-right vote on asylum rocks German parliament
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 30 - 01 - 2025

Germany's parliament descended into heckles and recriminations on Wednesday after a "firewall" against working with the far-right cracked.
A non-binding motion calling for tougher border and asylum rules passed with support from the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD). During the stormy session, politicians of various parties hurled criticism and blame at each other.
Conservative CDU leader Friedrich Merz, who tabled the plans, defended his actions as "necessary". But Chancellor Olaf Scholz slammed the move as an "unforgivable mistake".
Merz now plans to propose actual legislation on Friday – again with possible AfD backing – aimed at curbing immigration numbers and family reunion rights.
But his proposed measures are highly unlikely to come into effect this side of February's snap election and – if they did – could clash with EU law.
Referring to the AfD's support for the motion, the CDU leader told the Bundestag that a policy wasn't wrong just because the "wrong people back it".
"How many more children have to become victims of such acts of violence before you also believe there is a threat to public safety and order?" he asked.
The CDU leader – tipped to be Germany's next chancellor because of his party's leading position in the polls – has also insisted he has neither sought nor wants AfD support.
"Thinking about how the AfD fraction will cheer and their happy faces makes me feel uncomfortable," he told lawmakers.
Chancellor Scholz – a social democrat whose coalition government collapsed last year – castigated Merz for his actions.
"Since the founding of the Federal Republic of Germany over 75 years ago, there has always been a clear consensus among all democrats in our parliaments: we do not make common cause with the far right."
Germany's already fraught debate on immigration has flared up following a series of fatal attacks where the suspect is an asylum-seeker, most recently in the city of Aschaffenburg.
It has become a central issue in campaigning for the election, triggered by the collapse of Scholz's governing coalition.
Wednesday's CDU motion, supported by the AfD and liberal FDP, called for a "ban" on anyone entering Germany without the right documents – but it cannot compel the current minority government to act.
It's hard to overstate the importance of the firewall against the far-right in German political culture. Remembrance of the Holocaust plays a fundamental role in modern Germany.
Before Wednesday's vote, the Bundestag held its yearly commemoration for the victims of the Nazis, during which 88-year-old Holocaust survivor Roman Schwarzmann addressed parliament.
German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier also delivered a speech to MPs, calling for the Nazis' crimes never to be forgotten. There should be no "line drawn" ending our historical responsibility as Germans, he said.
This directly contradicts the policy of the AfD, which has criticised German memory culture and argued for a broader view of the country's history.
That's partly why so many were shocked when Friedrich Merz said last week that he didn't care if the AfD supported his parliamentary motions or not.
This contradicts not only his previous statements, but also the official line of his party, which bans the conservatives from relying on the far-right in parliamentary votes.
Sections of the AfD have been classed as right-wing extremists by domestic intelligence, but the party is is currently polling second, although Merz has ruled out any kind of coalition with them.
This week, latest polls showed that support for the conservative CDU had slipped a couple of percentage points to 28%, while the AfD increased slightly to 20%.
AfD leader Alice Weidel has said the firewall amounts to an "anti-democratic cartel agreement" and has predicted it will crumble over the coming years.
Opening the door to leaning on support from the far-right is a gamble for Merz, who believes that his increasingly radical stance on migration will win back right-wingers who are tempted to vote for the AfD.
But in so doing, he could risk losing support from the centre.
With these latest parliamentary motions, Merz has definitively said goodbye to the era of his more centrist conservative predecessor Angela Merkel, who a decade ago famously said "wir schaffen das" or "we can do it" when Germany was faced with large numbers of migrants and refugees.
These motions are symbolic, signalling what the conservatives would like to do in power. But they are also a concrete signal to voters about who Merz appears prepared to accept support from.
Critics say he has broken his word on the firewall. No wonder the AfD cheered in parliament when the result was announced. — BBC


Clic here to read the story from its source.