Merkel calls for burqa ban, toughens asylum stance
German Chancellor Angela Merkel called for a burqa ban wherever possible at her conservative Christian Democrats' (CDU) party conference, as the party gears up to back her for a fourth term. Merkel told the about 1,000 delegates that last year's storming of German borders by about one million refugees would not be repeated, while calling for a ban on the Islamic full-face veil. "A situation like that of the summer of 2015 can and should not be repeated," Merkel said at the two-day CDU party conference in the western industrial city of Essen. "This was and remains our declared political goal."
Germany saw about 890,000 asylum-seekers arrive last year. Many came after Merkel decided in September 2015 to let in migrants who were stuck in Hungary. The numbers have since declined sharply, but Merkel's approach to the migrant crisis has provoked discord within the CDU, which has seen a string of poor state election results this year.
The chancellor called on her party to help her fight the election in September 2017, which she said would be like no other in the history of unified Germany, with the CDU facing challenges from both the left and the right.
The CDU's move to forge a more hardline approach to refugees at its conference comes in the wake of a string of state election successes by the right-wing populist Alternative for Germany (AfD). In particular, the AfD has siphoned votes from the CDU after capitalizing on anger in parts of the German electorate over Merkel's liberal refugee policy. Merkel told the conference that the priority had to be to ensure the stability of the European Union in the face of international uncertainties.
Germany's key European allies such as France, Italy and the Netherlands, are also facing the threat of a surge in support for populist and eurosceptical parties. Combined with this has been the June vote in Britain to exit the European Union and the shock victory of the New York billionaire Donald Trump in last month's US presidential election. "In this situation, in which the world appears to be coming apart, to ensure that Europe does not emerge even weaker from the crises than it went," Merkel said.
Germany saw about 890,000 asylum-seekers arrive last year. Many came after Merkel decided in September 2015 to let in migrants who were stuck in Hungary. The numbers have since declined sharply, but Merkel's approach to the migrant crisis has provoked discord within the CDU, which has seen a string of poor state election results this year.
The chancellor called on her party to help her fight the election in September 2017, which she said would be like no other in the history of unified Germany, with the CDU facing challenges from both the left and the right.
The CDU's move to forge a more hardline approach to refugees at its conference comes in the wake of a string of state election successes by the right-wing populist Alternative for Germany (AfD). In particular, the AfD has siphoned votes from the CDU after capitalizing on anger in parts of the German electorate over Merkel's liberal refugee policy. Merkel told the conference that the priority had to be to ensure the stability of the European Union in the face of international uncertainties.
Germany's key European allies such as France, Italy and the Netherlands, are also facing the threat of a surge in support for populist and eurosceptical parties. Combined with this has been the June vote in Britain to exit the European Union and the shock victory of the New York billionaire Donald Trump in last month's US presidential election. "In this situation, in which the world appears to be coming apart, to ensure that Europe does not emerge even weaker from the crises than it went," Merkel said.