Migrants
must be screened: Cologne attacks report
Close
to 900 cases of sexual abuse in public spaces were recorded on New
Year’s Eve 2015 in Germany.
By ESTHER
KING 11/28/16, 8:45 AM CET Updated 11/28/16, 8:50 AM CET
A report on the mass
sexual assaults carried out in Cologne on New Year’s Eve 2015
recommends better screening of migrants and closer cross-border
cooperation, German newspaper Die Zeit reported Monday.
A panel of experts
from seven state criminal police agencies, alongside the federal
police office, will present their analysis of the Cologne attacks at
a meeting of German interior ministers in Saarbrücken on Tuesday,
according to Kölner Express, which obtained a copy of the 60-page
secret report.
The Federal Criminal
Police Office revealed 881 cases of sexual abuse in public spaces
were recorded on the night of December 31, 2015 in Cologne,
Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Frankfurt and Stuttgart. Most victims were 18
to 24-year-old women and the majority of perpetrators were reported
to be from Algeria, Morocco and Iraq.
The incident cast
serious doubt over German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s open-door
refugee policy and sparked a debate over how to handle migrants who
committed criminal offenses. Law enforcement officials came under
sharp criticism for failing to prevent the wave of assaults and for
the way they communicated with the public. Cologne’s local police
chief was forced to step down in the aftermath.
The report made
several recommendations to prevent similar attacks in public spaces,
such as reinforcing police crowd management resources and increasing
police presence through “mobile departments” to deter potential
perpetrators and encourage victims to report incidents.
Refugees rest aboard
the Topaz Responder ship run by Maltese NGO Moas and Italian Red
Cross on November 5, 2016 off the coast of Libya
It also noted the
need for better screening of migrants arriving in Germany, both as a
preventative measure and to assist criminal investigations with
better information. The report recommended investing in better
integration and language courses for migrants, saying a lack of
social recognition and barriers to personal contact with locals could
lead to frustration.
Exchanging data with
other countries is also crucial, the report said, suggesting the use
of Europol “mobile offices” to enhance cooperation.
“Legal vacuums
cannot exit in reality or in personal experience,” the report said,
according to Kölner Express.
Authors:
Esther King
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