The assaults on women in Germany on New Year’s eve have caused outrage across Europe as the continent grapples with a refugee crisis considered the most serious after the Second World War. The European Right is likely to seize upon the abhorrent attacks, which also involved robbing, as an opportunity to proclaim yet again that it was right. Furore generated by the incident has sent ripples across the political spectrum, which has been debating the issue of refugees and asylum-seekers who have swamped southern, western and northern Europe. Barbs so far exchanged between conservative and liberal political dispensations have acquired sharper overtones.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel raised the subject of integration of migrants yesterday while commenting on the incident. She promised strong action against the perpetrators who, it is believed, numbered between 20 and 30. Police have identified 16 suspects who surrounded women revellers and misbehaved with them. The men, who it is thought were in an inebriated state, are said to be of North African origin. The assaults were not limited to the Rhineland city of Cologne in which police received 121 complaints. Some 70 complaints have emerged from the northern port city of Hamburg where also a group of women was attacked and robbed.
In the absence of strong evidence, it is not yet clear if the perpetrators were asylum-seekers. Germany is home to a large expatriate community from many parts of the world. It would be preposterous to blame asylum-seekers before the police probe is complete.
The incident has stoked a debate on integration and refugee policy in the central European country that bypassed the European economic crisis, and is an example of a strong democracy and a secular polity. Merkel’s right-leaning Christian Democratic Union has weathered many a storm after being accused of an excessively liberal refugee policy by left-leaning parties.
The German Chancellor, herself a daughter of a Lutheran pastor, has been largely courted by the refugees who see her as their saviour. Often called Mommy Merkel, she strongly stood by her refugee policy, often fending off attacks by a belligerent opposition.
The latest attacks have undoubtedly stirred a hornet’s nest in the country as it heads into the New Year with its multifarious challenges. 2015 saw Germany at the forefront of the refugee crisis. It was often praised for what was considered the most liberal refugee policy after Turkey’s, which though not part of the bloc, aspires to be a European Union nation.
If police investigations find that the attacks were carried out by asylum-seekers, it is likely to intensify opposition to Merkel’s refugee policy. A spike in resentment against refugees from the Middle East and North Africa, which is a more likely outcome, will be more worrying for law keepers.
The assaults on women in Germany on New Year’s eve have caused outrage across Europe as the continent grapples with a refugee crisis considered the most serious after the Second World War. The European Right is likely to seize upon the abhorrent attacks, which also involved robbing, as an opportunity to proclaim yet again that it was right. Furore generated by the incident has sent ripples across the political spectrum, which has been debating the issue of refugees and asylum-seekers who have swamped southern, western and northern Europe. Barbs so far exchanged between conservative and liberal political dispensations have acquired sharper overtones.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel raised the subject of integration of migrants yesterday while commenting on the incident. She promised strong action against the perpetrators who, it is believed, numbered between 20 and 30. Police have identified 16 suspects who surrounded women revellers and misbehaved with them. The men, who it is thought were in an inebriated state, are said to be of North African origin. The assaults were not limited to the Rhineland city of Cologne in which police received 121 complaints. Some 70 complaints have emerged from the northern port city of Hamburg where also a group of women was attacked and robbed.
In the absence of strong evidence, it is not yet clear if the perpetrators were asylum-seekers. Germany is home to a large expatriate community from many parts of the world. It would be preposterous to blame asylum-seekers before the police probe is complete.
The incident has stoked a debate on integration and refugee policy in the central European country that bypassed the European economic crisis, and is an example of a strong democracy and a secular polity. Merkel’s right-leaning Christian Democratic Union has weathered many a storm after being accused of an excessively liberal refugee policy by left-leaning parties.
The German Chancellor, herself a daughter of a Lutheran pastor, has been largely courted by the refugees who see her as their saviour. Often called Mommy Merkel, she strongly stood by her refugee policy, often fending off attacks by a belligerent opposition.
The latest attacks have undoubtedly stirred a hornet’s nest in the country as it heads into the New Year with its multifarious challenges. 2015 saw Germany at the forefront of the refugee crisis. It was often praised for what was considered the most liberal refugee policy after Turkey’s, which though not part of the bloc, aspires to be a European Union nation.
If police investigations find that the attacks were carried out by asylum-seekers, it is likely to intensify opposition to Merkel’s refugee policy. A spike in resentment against refugees from the Middle East and North Africa, which is a more likely outcome, will be more worrying for law keepers.
