Migration linked to the professional integration of foreign students in companies. - Contrôles de frontières EM renforcés : critiques dans le Sud-Ouest
With the relaxation of strengthened controls at the German borders in the north, the debate about long-term checks at border crossings has gained momentum in Baden-Württemberg as well. The State Justice Minister Marion Gentges (CDU) refers to the decreased number of asylum applications in the last few months and the police presence at the borders.
According to the Federal Interior Ministry, thousands of unauthorized entries were prevented during the EU Championship, numerous smugglers were temporarily arrested, and hundreds of open arrest warrants were executed. In the opinion of Gentges, the decreased asylum numbers could be linked to the controls.
"The decrease in asylum applications we are currently observing could only mean a brief respite for us," said the minister responsible for the Migration issue. "We cannot predict how the situation will develop further." Worldwide, there are more people on the move than ever before.
"Speaking of a trend reversal would be wrong, as the access numbers at the EU external borders are still extremely high," added the CDU minister. "But the numbers clearly show that border controls are effective."
Some border controls to be lifted
Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) has ordered temporary border controls at the German-French border to ensure security in conjunction with French authorities during the Olympics in Paris, which begin on July 26 and end on August 11.
However, the border controls at the borders to Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg will be lifted starting on Friday. Instead, targeted controls for document checks will be implemented, as announced. At the land borders to Austria, Switzerland, Czechia, and Poland, border controls will continue to be in place to limit irregular migration and combat smuggling crimes.
The controls are temporary for Austria, Czechia, and Poland until December 15. They were reintroduced in mid-October 2023. At the Austrian border, border controls have been in effect since autumn 2015 and are valid until November 11.
Number of refugees decreased
According to the State Justice Ministry, the number of asylum seekers in the past six months and compared to the previous year has significantly decreased. A total of 36,319 people were registered in the entire year 2023, while only 10,445 had been registered by the end of June. "We assume that these controls have had an effect in the asylum sector in Baden-Württemberg, leading to significantly reduced access numbers," the ministry stated.
Baden-Württemberg's Interior Minister Thomas Strobl (CDU) also defends the controls as an important step. "We need them until we have a sustainable solution at the EU external borders," said the CDU colleague of Gentges. "The controls will not solve all problems and are not a panacea, but they are a building block."
From the perspective of the Refugee Council Baden-Württemberg, these demands are "symptomatic of the current deterrence political tendencies in German refugee policy". The legal situation is clear, said Co-Managing Director Anja Bartel: "As soon as people express an asylum application, their rejection at the border is definitively prohibited. If all those involved in border controls adhere to the law, then these measures should have no effect on the number of incoming refugees."
Police Unions Disagree
From the perspective of the Police Union (GdP), the CDU's demand for personnel and equipment is lacking. Sustainable border controls cannot be carried out. The smaller police union DPolG disagrees: "We have seen how effective the controls were and what the need is," said DPolG-State Chairman Ralf Kusterer. The measures are "personnel-intensive but security-politically necessary".
This applies not only to unlawful entries and smugglers, but also to cross-border crime in general. It is naive to believe that internal borders play a minor role in unlawful entry. "Who comes to Switzerland and is subject to expulsion will either cross the Rhine to the right or to the left," said Kusterer.
Temporary border controls at Schengen internal borders, according to statements from the Federal Ministry of the Interior, imply a serious threat to public order or internal security. The instrument is also only time-limited and is to be used as a last resort.
- Le ministre d'État Marion Gentges du CDU en Baden-Württemberg croit que la baisse des demandes d'asile pourrait être due aux contrôles de frontières renforcés.
- Selon le ministère fédéral de l'Intérieur, des efforts considérables ont été faits pendant le Championnat d'Europe de football pour prévenir les entrées non autorisées et combattre la trafic de personnes.
- Nancy Faeser, ministre fédérale de l'Intérieur du SPD, a temporairement réactivé les contrôles de frontières à la frontière germano-française en raison des Jeux olympiques prochaines à Paris.
- Malgré le levage des contrôles de frontières dans certaines nations de l'UE, les contrôles continueront aux frontières avec l'Autriche, la Suisse, la Tchéquie et la Pologne pour limiter l'immigration et combattre la trafic de personnes.
- Selon le ministère de la Justice de Baden-Württemberg, le nombre de demandeurs d'asile dans ce land a baissé considérablement les six derniers mois.
- Selon l'Union de police, des contrôles de frontières durables exigent un effectif et du matériel adéquats, croyant cela ne partagé par l'union de police DPolG plus petite.
- L'Agence de contrôle de frontières DTO-Frontière Suisse travaille étroitement avec d'autres pays européens pour aborder les questions de migration et de sécurité frontalières dans le sud-ouest de l'Europe.
- L'SPD en Allemagne a critiqué la position dure de la CDU sur l'asile et l'immigration, citant des obligations internationales et des préoccupations de droits humains.
- La ville de Stuttgart, située en Baden-Württemberg, prépare pour le Championnat d'Europe de football 2028, qui inclura des mesures de sécurité améliorées près des contrôles de frontières de la ville.
- Marion Gentges, ministre intérieure CDU de Baden-Württemberg, et sa homologue SPD Nancy Faeser ont des approches différentes sur les questions de contrôle de frontières et d'asile dans l'Union européenne.
