Mother
Angela: Merkel's Refugee Policy Divides Europe
Germans
long knew their chancellor as a rational, deliberate decision maker.
But in the refugee crisis, a new Merkel has emerged, driven by
empathy. Increasingly, it is looking like the emotion-driven Merkel
is prone to error. By SPIEGEL Staff
September 21, 2015 –
We can do it. That's
the message Chancellor Angela Merkel has been giving her country ever
since she pledged in late August to provide refuge to anyone coming
from Syria in addition to others seeking protection from violence and
warfare. The initial euphoria in the country was significant, with
tens of thousands of everyday Germans joining the army of helpers to
try and cope with the huge influx of needy refugees.
But there have since
been signs that the initial elation is fading. The most obvious, of
course, was Berlin's reintroduction of border controls on the German
frontier with Austria a little over a week ago. But there have been
others as well: Frustration in German states about insufficient
federal assistance; grumbling within Merkel's party about her open
door policy; and conflicts with the Social Democrats within Merkel's
governing coalition.
Indeed, Germany is
struggling to maintain its composure and to ward off panic despite
all the rising doubts.
Can it be done?
Monday morning a
week ago. Senior members of Merkel's conservative Christian
Democratic Union (CDU) are meeting to discuss the refugee situation.
They talk about the Syrians and Afghans who are filling gymnasiums
and moving into container villages that are springing up outdoors.
The governors of Germany's 16 states report on shortcomings, from the
lack of beds to the lack of doctors and teachers. For Merkel, it is
but the bleeting of naysayers.
And it doesn't take
long for her to lose patience. When Jens Spahn, state secretary in
the Finance Ministry, shares his own story of desperate volunteers
asking him how things are supposed to continue in their current
state, the chancellor interjects.
Merely describing
reality and talking about feelings isn't enough, says Angela Merkel.
"Those who bear the responsibility of being in government like
we do have a different role. We have to provide the people with
answers and solutions."
Can We Do It?
Courageous words,
perhaps, but also a bit concerning. Can a report focusing on real
conditions on the ground really be seen as an attack on the
government line? May truths not be uttered just because they don't
align with Merkel's indestructible optimism? As many as a million
refugees will come to Germany this year. Can we do it?
Yes, Merkel says, of
course we can. It was only three weeks ago that the chancellor said
Germany was an amiable country -- and that people fleeing war and
political persecution are welcome here. Such statements, free of
tactic and calculation, are new for the chancellor.
Her words traveled
at lightning speed. They were shared over Facebook and Twitter, via
email and SMS, prompting tens of thousands of people -- maybe
hundreds of thousands -- to make their way to Europe. In Hungary,
refugees are being fought off with water cannons and tear gas. Police
officers are back at the German border with Austria to at least try
and channel the flow of desperate people pouring in.
Did Merkel
miscalculate? Does she still have the situation under control?
The Merkel era began
exactly 10 years ago, on Sept. 18, 2005, when she beat out Gerhard
Schröder in the general election. It was the beginning of a
chancellorship that was at first precarious. She didn't only have to
defend herself against Schröder, who lectured her like a schoolchild
on the evening that he lost the election, but also against the many
enemies within her own ranks who were just waiting for the right
moment to knock her off her pedestal.
But that moment
never came. Merkel was an unlikely presence in German politics: a
woman from East Germany in the male-dominated, West German CDU. Her
secret weapon, though, was caution. She used it to shove aside all of
her opponents. Only Merkel is left.
It is now being said
that, after all those years of hesitation and procrastination, Merkel
has finally found her issue with the refugees. But that is a rather
one-dimensional approach. There is, in fact, much more at stake.
Merkel is trying to transform Germany into a moral superpower in
Europe. It is an aim that is not entirely free of hubris.
Shifting Mood
Despite periodic
bouts of bluster, German chancellors have always strived for
consensus in the EU. But Merkel has now embarked on her own special
path. And when it comes to refugees, she's on her own, cursed by the
Eastern Europeans and abandoned by the Brits. Neighboring Austria
applauds politely, but the country is happy when the refugees
continue on to Germany.
Within Merkel's own
party, the mood is shifting. Many think she is slowly losing her grip
on the situation. They believe she made a generous gesture, but now
she is failing at administering the crisis. And there is some truth
to that. After all, like Interior Minister Thomas de Maizière, she
spent months blithely ignoring multitude warnings about the rising
refugee numbers.
Merkel has long been
one to respond to criticism with gentle conviction. But that
sanguinity appears to be gone, replaced by gently irascible bluster.
Last Tuesday, for example, when she said she would not apologize for
Germany showing a friendly face -- because otherwise it "would
not be my country" -- she was doing more than just rebuking her
critics. It was an unveiled threat: If you don't follow me, you're
going to have to look for a new chancellor.
What has gotten into
Merkel? The Germans thought they knew their chancellor, whose
popularity was largely attributable to her predictability and her at
times tiring prudence. Now there is suddenly idealism flashing forth
and the world isn't quite sure what to make of it.
Israel and the US
are celebrating Merkel. The New York Times gave her a "bravo."
Israeli historian Tom Segev says Germany is being "noble and
commendable." Among Germany's European partners, however, the
enthusiasm is much less effusive. And it's not only Hungarian Prime
Minister Viktor Orbán who is openly rebelling against the Merkel
approach.
Merkel's invitation
to refugees, after all, wasn't just in Germany's name. She was
effectively speaking for all of Europe -- her words put the onus for
accepting all the refugees who heeded Merkel's call on the entire
Continent. Europe is bursting at the seams and it's Merkel who is
responsible.
Losing a Sense of
Proportion
But Europe isn't
interested in aligning itself with the German understanding of
humanity. The British government can barely conceal its horror at
Merkel's new course. Home Secretary Theresa May said last Wednesday
that it was important to help people living in civil war-torn regions
-- "not the ones who are strong and rich enough to come to
Europe." She categorically rejected Merkel's plan to distribute
refugees among European Union member states.
French President
François Hollande, whom Merkel has made an ally in the refugee
crisis, has kept his distance. Hollande said he wanted to take 1,000
refugees off Germany's hands. A paltry number, to say the least. But
these days, Merkel should be grateful even for that. "We never
raised unrealistic hopes," says one adviser to the French
president.
German Interior
Minister de Maizière is already in the process of altering Germany's
approach to asylum-seekers. He plans to provide so-called "Dublin
refugees" with a small "subsidy to cover the costs of
unavoidable travel necessities" and deport them back to their
first EU country of arrival. This doesn't fit the image of the
merciful Merkel at all. Germany "cannot accept everyone who
comes from a crisis region," says de Maizière.
Merkel's
transformation is telling of the difference between politics that are
good and politics that are right. The distinction is as old as
political philosophy itself. German political philosopher Max Weber
identified the distinction as being between the ethics of conviction
and the ethics of responsibility. In other words, the difference
between politics that are guided only by morals or by the likely
consequences policies might produce.
What person with a
heart would condemn a policy seeking to help refugees who make their
way, children in tow, from Greece, through the Balkans and on to
Germany? But where is the right balance between humanity and reality?
And: Is it more important to save refugees or to save the EU, which
itself embodies an answer to the horrors of war. A closer look at the
drama of the last few weeks shows that Merkel has lost her sense of
proportion.
Berlin, Tegel
Airport, August 19
At 1 p.m. on this
beautiful summer day, Merkel sets off to Brazil, joined by a large
delegation. Before she makes her way to the plane, however, she
speaks with Interior Minister de Maizière on the phone. He tells her
about the rapidly rising number of refugees and says he plans to
announce a new full-year forecast that afternoon, a figure that has
been upwardly revised from 450,000 to 800,000.
Merkel is alarmed.
The number 800,000 is significant -- large enough, in fact, to
dominate the public discussion. And Merkel knows how fragile the
situation is. On the one hand, the German economy is booming. In
contrast to the early 1990s, when hundreds of thousands of refugees
came to Germany from the Balkans, Germans aren't worried about their
jobs. On the other hand, Merkel is all too familiar with the often
irrational fears harbored by Germans. It has long been important to
her that the government not do anything that might inflame the
situation further. And she is confident that the CSU won't add fuel
to the fire. The Bavarians, she believes, know exactly where the line
to right-wing populism lies.
Merkel, though, is
still unsure of how to tackle the crisis. The calls for the
chancellor to visit a refugee hostel are growing louder, but she
doesn't want to show up empty-handed. A political leader must offer
solutions and not just complain about the circumstances, she says. It
is a sentence that will come up often in the next few weeks.
Nuremberg, Federal
Office for Migration and Refugees, August 21
Angelika Wenzl, a
senior official at Germany's Federal Office for Migration and
Refugees, writes a momentous paper bearing the reference number
411-93605/Syria/2015. It states that the elaborate Dublin procedures
will be suspended for refugees from Syria. That means that whoever
makes it to Germany from the civil war-town country will no longer be
sent away, even if another EU country is technically responsible for
them. The memo, never meant to go public, was supposed to provide
some bureaucratic relief.
But once Wenzl's
message ends up in the inbox of the aid organization Pro Asyl, it's
not long before it goes up on their English website. Any doubts about
the document's authenticity were brushed aside by the Federal Office
for Migration and Refugees on August 25. At 1:30 p.m., the
Nuremberg-based agency's social media team tweets: "We are at
present largely no longer enforcing Dublin procedures for Syrian
citizens." Most of the time, the federal agency's tweets only
get shared three or four times. This particular tweet, however, gets
retweeted 156 times. Even the BBC picks up on it. One Twitter user
asks whether the new guideline only applies to Syrians who were
already in the country. The organization replies that the decision is
not pegged to any specific date of entry.
In Berlin, the
Interior Ministry goes into damage-control mode. "But that's not
a legally binding act, so to speak -- no requirement, no suspension
of Dublin -- it's much more a guideline for administrators," a
stammering Thomas de Maizière tells journalists. But word has long
gotten out to the world. The British daily Independent runs the
headline, "Germany opens its gates." Syrians post pictures
of Angela Merkel to Facebook emblazoned with the words, "Wir
lieben dich," or "We love you."
Heidenau,
Hauptstrasse 10, August 26
As Merkel's
motorcade rolls onto the parking lot of the former Praktiker DIY
store in Heidenau, two groups of people are waiting for her. One is
quiet, the other is furious. The quiet one is made up of refugees and
their helpers. The other is comprised of irate Heidenau natives.
Merkel winces as she hears the cries. "Traitor!" some roar,
along with: "We are the pack!" Merkel looks confused, then
she waves because that's what she's used to doing, and disappears
behind a barricade.
The choice to visit
Heidenau is a response to the violent clashes between right-wing
marchers and police in front of a newly opened refugee hostel on
August 21 and 22. It was an incident that made global headlines and
Merkel is eager to show a different face of Germany.
She tours the new
refugee accommodation for more than an hour. Outside it's hot, with
the sun beating down on the crowd, and the mood heats up as well. As
Merkel reappears, the noise becomes deafening. Horns are blown and
one woman yells in a shrill voice, "You cunt! Get back in your
ugly car!"
For days to follow,
Merkel's people continue to speak of their astonishment at the
lynch-mob atmosphere in Heidenau. As chancellor, they say, Merkel is
used to insults. But what should the people do who are out to help
the refugees? They don't have bodyguards, yet they still must face
"the pack." At the Chancellery, the belief solidifies that
Merkel must set an example.
Merkel has never had
sympathy for the far-right. In 2003, she ejected Martin Hohmann from
the conservatives' parliamentary group because he had played upon
anti-Semitic clichés in a speech. Over the years, Merkel's position
has become more entrenched. In internal discussions, she has rejected
any attempts to posit a psychological explanation for far-right
extremism in Germany's East. She has no understanding for it
whatsoever.
Vienna, Hofburg,
August 27
Merkel is in town
for a conference on the Western Balkans. Right in the middle of the
meeting, news arrives of a truck parked on the A4 autobahn near
Vienna containing dozens of suffocated refugees. Merkel goes before
the press and says: "We are all appalled at this horrifying
news."
Berlin, Federal
Press Conference building, August 31
Merkel gives her
annual press conference in front of the Berlin press corps. But this
time, it isn't just a routine appearance. The word "proud"
comes up often in her comments. She is "proud" of the
humanity displayed in the German constitution and she is "proud"
of the many Germans who are helping the refugees. "The world
sees Germany as a country of hope and opportunity," she says. It
quickly becomes clear that she wants to send a clear message: Those
who are oppressed and those who are fleeing from a civil war are
welcome. It won't be easy, she says, but "we can do it."
They are the kind of
sentences that have never before been spoken by a chancellor. She is
inviting Germans to follow their hearts rather than their interests;
she is asking them to invest their energy and money into the
reception of refugees. The chancellor gave an oath to devote herself
to the good of the German people, but she is now risking her entire
political capital for Syrians, Iraqis and Afghans who are in need of
help.
Merkel has made
risky decisions in the past. In December 1999, for example, she wrote
a letter to the influential German daily Frankfurter Allgemeine
Zeitung saying it was time for a leadership change in the Christian
Democratic Union. The party's head, Helmut Kohl, had become enmeshed
in a party donation scandal and Merkel's letter served as the coup de
grâce. Another came in 2011, when she rapidly sounded the death
knell of nuclear energy in Germany in the aftermath of the Fukushima
meltdown in Japan.
But those decisions
were driven by fear. Merkel didn't want to be dragged into the
donation scandal that ultimately slowed or ended the careers of
several top CDU politicians, so she distanced herself from Kohl. And
the "Energiewende" -- Germany's shift away from nuclear and
toward renewables -- went so quickly because Merkel was afraid that
the CDU could lose support as a result of the Fukushima catastrophe.
It is difficult to
say what prompted Merkel, long seen as a sober practitioner of
realpolitik, to become the refugee chancellor -- or, as some
conservatives call her, "Mutti Teresa," a sharp-tongued
reference to her nickname in Germany: Mutti.
Merkel's people
vehemently reject the psychological explanations that are currently
being posited in German newspapers. One theory, for example, holds
that Merkel, who has no children of her own, was deeply moved by the
crying refugee girl she encountered during a town meeting in Rostock.
Emotion in politics
is dangerous. Those who gain a reputation for being guided by their
feelings are seen as being open to manipulation. Still, there are
several indications that Merkel's refugee policy is driven more by
her sentiment than she is willing to admit. One person who has known
her for a long time says that it really did get to her that, during
the Grexit crisis, she was portrayed as the second coming of the
Nazis. Plus, her popularity gives her plenty of leeway. Not unlike
the super-rich, she is at a moment in her chancellorship when she can
spend political capital on things that don't turn a profit.
Luxembourg, European
Convention Center, September 4
The situation in
Hungary is becoming serious. Thousands of people are surging toward
the border and refugees begin breaking out of the camp at Röszke,
near the Serbian border. Meanwhile, 2,000 refugees stranded in
Budapest begin making their way on foot to Austria. They walk along a
highway as cars speed past.
In Luxembourg, EU
foreign ministers have gathered for a meeting and Austrian Foreign
Minister Sebastian Kurz takes his German counterpart, Frank-Walter
Steinmeier, aside. The conditions in Hungary are catastrophic, he
says, and Germany and Austria must act.
Steinmeier calls the
chancellor, who is at a CDU anniversary event in Cologne with 500
guests. Merkel makes them wait for an hour. After the celebration,
she speaks with Austrian Chancellor Werner Faymann, German Interior
Minister de Maizière and again with Steinmeier. Then, she makes her
decision: The refugees will be brought to Germany in special trains.
Officially, no
German ministry is opposed to the decision, but ministerial experts
nevertheless issue strong warnings. Officials in both the Interior
Ministry and the Foreign Ministry warn that the decision will attract
even more refugees to come to Germany.
Merkel doesn't care.
She is more concerned about Europe's reputation. What kind of message
would it send if images went around the world showing elderly
refugees and pregnant women collapsing in exhaustion while marching
to Germany?
At 11:30 p.m.,
Merkel's office tries to reach Horst Seehofer, the powerful governor
of Bavaria and head of the Christian Social Union, the Bavarian
sister party to the CDU. But the CSU boss is on vacation and has
turned off his phone's ringer. Maybe he didn't hear the call; maybe
he didn't want to hear the call. In urgent situations, Seehofer can
always be reached by way of his bodyguards. But Merkel doesn't make
the effort. She has already made up her mind anyway.
Consistent with
protocol, however, Chancellery Chief of Staff Peter Altmaier calls
Seehofer's chief of staff, Karolina Gernbauer, a short time later.
Gernbauer sends Seehofer a text message, which he also doesn't see
right away. But the message is how he learns of Merkel's decision the
next morning.
Munich, September 5
At 4 p.m. on
Saturday, top CSU politicians receive a text message saying
"important appointment." They are asked to join a telephone
conference at 6 p.m. to "vote on a joint position."
Seehofer reports that the chancellor has unfortunately unilaterally
"decided in favor of a vision of a different Germany."
Seehofer, it is clear to all of those in the meeting, hopes to derive
political capital from the refugee issue. His message: Merkel wants
to turn Germany into a vast refugee hostel.
Merkel would have
loved to have kept the issue out of the political debate. But now,
that is no longer possible. In contrast to the chancellor, Seehofer
has no political capital to give away. His last significant political
defeat, the failure of his plans to implement a highway toll system,
is still fresh. It was a mistake for Merkel to believe that the CSU
would be able to withstand the temptations of populism. Bavarian
Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann tells journalists after the
meeting that Merkel's decision "sends exactly the wrong message
within Europe."
Berlin, Chancellery,
September 7
Merkel and her vice
chancellor, Social Democratic Party head Sigmar Gabriel, report to
the press about the results of their refugee crisis meeting. A
reporter asks Merkel what it feels like to be the face of friendly
Germany in the world.
It is a seductive
question as it is aimed at Merkel's vanity, but she could easily have
brushed it aside with a couple of sound bites. Instead, she says: "I
am happy that Germany too has become a country that gives many people
hope outside of Germany. And if you look at our history, that is
something of tremendous value. So, I definitely do find it moving."
Berlin, Interior
Ministry, September 12
The numbers that are
now arriving daily on de Maizière's desk are becoming dramatic. Some
40,000 new arrivals are forecast for the weekend alone. German states
are insisting that they can't take any more.
De Maizière sets up
a conference call with conservative state interior ministers and,
after about 15 minutes, Bavarian Interior Minister Herrmann takes the
floor. The influx has gotten out of control, he says. "From my
perspective, only the temporary introduction of border controls can
help. The situation is so critical that we won't violate the Schengen
Code by doing so." The Schengen agreement allows members states
to introduce border controls in crisis situations for an initial
period of 30 days.
De Maizière says
that Germany's federal police force would need seven hours' notice to
take such a step. At that moment, it becomes clear to everyone that
the minister has already thought about introducing border controls.
"Is anyone in this meeting against it?" asks Herrmann.
Nobody says anything. Lorenz Caffier, the interior minister of
Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, proposes an emergency conference of
all interior ministers to discuss the idea of border controls with
their counterparts from the Social Democrats. Herrmann rejects the
proposal. It would, he said, be counterproductive to exert public
pressure on the chancellor.
De Maiziére
promises to tell the chancellor about the group's discussion.
Herrmann, for his part, immediately calls Seehofer to urge him to
pressure Merkel. At 1:26 p.m., Seehofer sends a text message to the
chancellor, ending with the words: "I can only urgently ask you
to act in accordance with the severity of the situation."
At the same time,
the leadership of the SPD meets. Gabriel has already been informed of
the changing sentiment within the CDU. He complains: "From the
very beginning, I didn't trust the euphoria." The SPD is
concerned that the message just sent out about Germany's openness
will be immediately countermanded. But Gabriel ensures that the
Social Democrats support the decision made by the conservative
interior ministers. A tele-conference is set up for 5:30 p.m. for
leaders of parties belonging to Merkel's governing coalition. Merkel,
Gabriel, Seehofer and several federal ministers join the call. At the
end, it is clear: border controls will be introduced.
It is a paradoxical
situation: Merkel wanted to show Europe as a paragon of humanity, but
now, the rule which, more than any other, stands for European
freedom, is being suspended. Across the Continent, border controls
are quickly reestablished.
Berlin, SPD Party
Headquarters, September 15
SPD party head
Gabriel meets with the governors of SPD-led states to prepare for a
meeting with Merkel that evening and the SPD governors complain about
the federal government's inadequate crisis management. "Why was
there no information?" they grumble. "Why are we only
talking now about money? Our municipalities can't take it anymore."
Party head Gabriel is irritated. He doesn't want refugees to become
an issue of conflictual between the SPD and Merkel's conservatives.
He defends Merkel and says: "I don't know either." Gabriel
is now closer to the chancellor than she is to her own party allies.
Berlin, Chancellery,
September 15
At 6:30 p.m.,
Germany's state governors meet with Merkel. The chancellor has
brought along Interior Minister de Maizière and Chief of Staff
Altmaier. Gabriel is there as well.
Merkel tries to
loosen things up with a joke. She learned from Seehofer, she says,
that warm words and slogans don't really help. There is laughter, but
the debate that follows is nonetheless unpleasant and the meeting
quickly becomes bogged down in a disagreement centering on money and
distribution quotas.
Because Gabriel has
made it clear that the SPD governors are to go easy on Merkel, they
focus their ire on Interior Minister de Maizière, who is already the
object of intense critique. De Maizière explains what he has in mind
when it comes to helping the German states and says that capacity for
40,000 asylum-seekers will be made available. But when he begins to
list unused police stations and empty military barracks, the
governors quickly interject. "They are already full," they
say. The chancellor says: "Looks like that will have to be
reevaluated by next week."
When the governors
issue a demand for the Federal Interior Ministry to finally take over
responsibility for the distribution of the refugees, de Maizière
initially balks. The federal government, he says, has no jurisdiction
over the issue.
Some shake their
heads. It's not about questions of responsibility, they say, but
about concrete assistance. Ultimately, de Maiziére gives in: "Okay,
then we'll start on Monday." But by then, Seehofer says,
Oktoberfest will have begun. It's too late. Merkel intervenes and
says: "Okay, we'll do so starting tomorrow."
In the end, the
meeting participants agree on creating space for 40,000
asylum-seekers. Seehofer, though, warns that this shouldn't be
understood by the refugees as an invitation. "We can't create
the impression that, because we have created 40,000 spaces, they must
be filled," he says. Merkel promises that it is only about
relieving pressure on the states, which is what she also says in the
press conference later.
The meeting in the
Chancellery reveals Merkel's weaknesses in the refugee crisis.
Normally, Merkel shies away from symbolic action and prefers
immersing herself in the details. This time, though, the opposite is
the case. How the country should handle the huge numbers of new
arrivals is completely unclear.
In Search of a
Better Life
Can we do it? One
thing is certain: Merkel underestimated the inviting power of her
words and how attracted people would be to come to Germany in search
of a better life.
But the refugee
crisis has also changed Germany's image in the world. Suddenly, it is
no longer burning asylum hostels and chanting neo-Nazis that are
dominating the headlines. Rather, it is people welcoming refugees at
German train stations with water and pretzels.
There are many who
are now looking at Germany full of admiration, liberal America first
and foremost. "Germany's road to redemption shines amid Europe's
refugee debate," was the headline on a Washington Post op-ed
written by Fareed Zakaria, one of the best known commentators in the
US.
But among Germany's
neighbors, Merkel's policies could also provide a significant boost
to right-wing populist parties. In both France and Austria, the right
wing has developed into a significant threat to governing parties.
The right-wing Freedom Party of Austria leads the public opinion
polls in the country at the moment while in France, it is far from
impossible that Front National leader Marine Le Pen will become the
country's next president.
One of the lessons
from the euro crisis was that there is no longer such a thing as
domestic policy in Europe. When the economy stagnates in France and
pensions climb in Greece, it has consequences for everyone. The same
is now true of Merkel's refugee policy. When she says that Germany's
right to asylum has no upper limit, train stations in Vienna and
Salzburg fill up and Hungary moves to build a razor-wire fence on its
border with Serbia.
Merkel hopes that
altruism can be infectious and that no European country can afford to
continue standing by as refugees drown in the Mediterranean. Merkel
has transformed the refugees into a gigantic political drama and has
declared the crisis to be existential for the European Union. That
was a mistake. Europe can't be allowed to break apart just because
agreement can't be reached on the distribution of refugees.
A Small, Ugly
Compromise
Merkel, of course,
knows that, which is why her position has taken on an air of
insolence. On Wednesday, European leaders will head to Brussels for a
meeting to discuss the situation.
Indications are that
a small, ugly compromise will emerge. It will encompass razor-wire
fences, registration centers on Europe's external borders and money
for countries like Lebanon and Turkey so that they might prevent
refugees from heading westward in the first place.
And there will be a
debate about Germany's basic right to asylum. Merkel says that one of
the greatest challenges facing Europe in the coming years is that of
agreeing on a unified, European right to asylum. But how should such
a right look when countries like Hungary and the Czech Republic see
providing shelter as little more than an act of mercy? Just as
Germany was not able to create the euro in the exact image of the
deutsche mark, Berlin will not be able to export its precise moral
vision to the rest of Europe.
Still, Merkel's
brief summer of humaneness was not in vain. It shamed politicians
whose first reflex was to explain why help, once again, could not be
extended. It showed that it is possible to break with political
routine and it encouraged all those Germans who, absent instruction
and invitation, followed their human instincts and welcomed the
refugees.
That will remain. It
made an impression far beyond Germany's borders, also in countries
that have reason to look at Germany with some degree of skepticism.
Born of the Holocaust, Israel was created as a guarantee that Jews
would never again have to travel around the world in the search of
protection from their oppressors and murderers. But now, a debate has
erupted there too as to whether the country has an obligation to take
in Syrians, regardless of their religion. Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu has thus far categorically rejected the idea. But the
Jewish historian Segev says: "We should learn from the Germans
how to treat refugees."
By Nicola Abé,
Melanie Amann, Hubert Gude, Peter Müller, Ralf Neukirch, René
Pfister, Barbara Schmid, Christoph Schult, Holger Stark and Wolf
Wiedmann-Schmidt
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