Germany’s chancellor faces a rebellion from his own party’s youth wing, for not sufficiently favouring open borders.
Senior members of the ‘Jusos’ youth wing of the Social Democrats say Chancellor Olaf Scholz is betraying the party’s ideals by attempting to tighten Germany’s migration policy.
Philipp Türmer and Sarah Mohamed are both competing to be Jusos’s next leader in a selection conference Friday and Saturday in Lower Saxony.
The Social Democrats, Scholz and interior minister Nancy Faeser “have crossed red lines on the asylum and migration issue”, Mohamed says in an interview with German media.
Scholz now needs to be “prepared” for backlash from Jusos, which will be “louder, more left-wing and more critical” of the party’s leadership, she says.
The party should never sacrifice policy for the sake of politics, especially when abandoning such policies would negatively affect Germany’s “weakest”, says Türmer.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is facing criticism from his Left flank, including his coalition partner The Greens, over his remarks about migration. https://t.co/MLhxx18qE2
— Brussels Signal (@brusselssignal) October 23, 2023
When even the centre-left is appearing to consider detrimental effects migration may have caused to German society, the Jusos remain militant on open borders.
It is an important issue for Mohamed, who the youth wing’s website describes as “responsible for the topics of feminism, anti-racism [and] migration/integration”.
Likewise, on Twitter Türmer strongly backs German NGOs attempting sea rescue in the Mediterranean, although they have damaged the country’s relationship with the Italian government.
“Sea rescue is not a crime – letting people drown in the Mediterranean is one!” he says to his 3,400 followers.
“Sea rescuers take on tasks that the state actually has to take on,” he adds. “They should not be criminalised, but should be supported!”
German politician Jens Spahn, of the Christian Democrat Party, has given a controversial interview calling for harsh measures against illegal migration. https://t.co/W0DDAn99K2
— Brussels Signal (@brusselssignal) October 25, 2023
