German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who won bouquets from all over the world (including the Time magazine’s Person of the Year award) for her bold and magnanimous help to migrants, is facing brickbats at home for her actions and policies. Merkel had set an example to Europe and the rest of the world by letting in more than a million asylum seekers who fled the war in Syria and other countries but the initial euphoria subsided and later gave way to outright hostility towards them as anti-immigrant feelings swelled all over Europe even as a human tide continued to knock at their doorsteps for entry and refuge.
Merkel and her conservative Christian Democrats (CDU) are now facing a key test in the first elections since the refugee crisis got into full swing last summer. Elections will be held in three states on Sunday - two in the west, and one in the former east – and the anti-immigrant opposition parties are capitalizing on and heavily benefiting from Merkel’s pro-immigrant stance. The election comes at a time when Merkel is trying to use her status as Europe’s most powerful leader to push through an EU deal with Turkey to stop the migrant flow.
The biggest beneficiary in the election battle is the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, whose hardline stance on refugees has won it huge support. Its leader, Frauke Petry, has been called the anti-Angela Merkel. While Merkel wants to welcome refugees, Petry wants border guards to turn guns on anyone crossing over illegally. While Merkel stands for tolerance, her rival is an embodiment of the intolerance that now runs through Europe and the United States. AfD’s rise has been amazing. Founded only in 2013, the party has morphed from an anti-euro zone bailout party into an anti-immigrant electoral force.
Merkel, known as the most powerful leader in Europe and a shrewd negotiator, is struggling to recover lost ground and finally may be able to limit the damage as she has toned down her policies. But her problems point to the challenges leaders in Europe face when they welcome refugees.
At the same time, Europe is losing its lustre to migrants as public hostility towards them breaches all limits. Migrants are returning to their countries from several countries in Europe like Finland and Sweden. Germany is no exception. Merkel herself said around 3,000 migrants were returning to Iraq from Germany every month and that the number was on the rise. Those who have stayed back are living in shelters and are frustrated with a slow asylum process.
More refugees are likely to return. But a solution to the refugee problem finally lies in finding a solution to the Syrian crisis.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who won bouquets from all over the world (including the Time magazine’s Person of the Year award) for her bold and magnanimous help to migrants, is facing brickbats at home for her actions and policies. Merkel had set an example to Europe and the rest of the world by letting in more than a million asylum seekers who fled the war in Syria and other countries but the initial euphoria subsided and later gave way to outright hostility towards them as anti-immigrant feelings swelled all over Europe even as a human tide continued to knock at their doorsteps for entry and refuge.
Merkel and her conservative Christian Democrats (CDU) are now facing a key test in the first elections since the refugee crisis got into full swing last summer. Elections will be held in three states on Sunday - two in the west, and one in the former east – and the anti-immigrant opposition parties are capitalizing on and heavily benefiting from Merkel’s pro-immigrant stance. The election comes at a time when Merkel is trying to use her status as Europe’s most powerful leader to push through an EU deal with Turkey to stop the migrant flow.
The biggest beneficiary in the election battle is the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, whose hardline stance on refugees has won it huge support. Its leader, Frauke Petry, has been called the anti-Angela Merkel. While Merkel wants to welcome refugees, Petry wants border guards to turn guns on anyone crossing over illegally. While Merkel stands for tolerance, her rival is an embodiment of the intolerance that now runs through Europe and the United States. AfD’s rise has been amazing. Founded only in 2013, the party has morphed from an anti-euro zone bailout party into an anti-immigrant electoral force.
Merkel, known as the most powerful leader in Europe and a shrewd negotiator, is struggling to recover lost ground and finally may be able to limit the damage as she has toned down her policies. But her problems point to the challenges leaders in Europe face when they welcome refugees.
At the same time, Europe is losing its lustre to migrants as public hostility towards them breaches all limits. Migrants are returning to their countries from several countries in Europe like Finland and Sweden. Germany is no exception. Merkel herself said around 3,000 migrants were returning to Iraq from Germany every month and that the number was on the rise. Those who have stayed back are living in shelters and are frustrated with a slow asylum process.
More refugees are likely to return. But a solution to the refugee problem finally lies in finding a solution to the Syrian crisis.
