Migration - GdP demands better equipment for border controls
The German Police Union (GdP) is calling for better equipment and supplies for police officers during the border controls that have been extended since mid-October. "There is a lack of everything," said the GdP chairman for the federal police, Andreas Roßkopf, in the Rheinische Post newspaper. "There is a lack of professional equipment at the checkpoints, a lack of decent accommodation and insufficient funds to pay for colleagues' travel expenses."
At the moment, 16 hundred police units, i.e. more than 1,600 riot police plus additional forces from domestic agencies, are deployed at border controls. "There is an urgent need for action on the part of the government, namely that we need additional resources to be able to provide our colleagues on the ground with proper care and support."
Faeser affirms effectiveness
In mid-October, Federal Minister of the Interior Nancy Faeser (SPD) ordered stationary controls at the borders with Poland, the Czech Republic and Switzerland. The aim is to combat smuggling crime more effectively and limit irregular migration. Stationary internal border controls have been in place at the German-Austrian border since the fall of 2015.
Police unionist Roßkopf once again expressed skepticism about the effectiveness of the measure. "This is not the solution. These are people who are fleeing in dire need, from Afghanistan, Syria or Turkey," he said. These people would not be deterred by border controls. In addition, the smuggling organizations are highly professional and highly criminal. "Billions go over the counter. We cannot prevent this through border controls."
Faeser, on the other hand, told the Rheinische Post that the combination of mobile and stationary controls is effective. "Thanks to our temporary border controls and the closely coordinated measures that our neighboring countries are taking at their borders, the number of unauthorized entries has fallen from over 20,000 in October to around 7,300 in November - by more than 60 percent. Since mid-October, the federal police have caught around 340 people smugglers."
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Source: www.stern.de
