Berlin.
The asylum policy summit did not need a breakthrough. This is a bitter omission – and helps above all right-wing agitators.
Only the dispute in the run-up to the refugee summit in the Chancellery was big – both between local politicians, but also between state ministers and the federal government. Everyone positioned themselves and munched themselves with arguments. There was little will for unity.
In terms of content, the summit in the Chancellery did not bring a breakthrough. Politicians are tightening individual adjustment screws in leaps and bounds: accelerated asylum procedures, digital files, migration agreements, more rigid deportations. And now – after all – one billion euros more from the federal government for the states.
All results of the summit: Federal government promises countries more money
That won’t be enough for the municipalities – and with growing numbers of asylum seekers, the tugging and squabbling over money will continue. With fatal consequences: for the people in the districts who have to work or volunteer to accommodate tens of thousands of people seeking protection. Also for the refugees themselves, who find it difficult to arrive in Germany due to a lack of housing and integration offers.
What Germany needs is a crisis-proof asylum infrastructure. And a federal capita per asylum seeker must be a central building block. The only way to help in this emergency situation is a long-term secured payment to the already cash-strapped and in many places over-indebted municipalities, which have to provide both care and accommodation.
Also read: How Germany is reaching its limits in refugee policy – a report
Disputes in asylum policy primarily benefit the AfD
Because war and crises remain, for years the number of people fleeing has been increasing worldwide. The emergency will not be over the day after tomorrow. When it comes to asylum policy, the federal and state governments must no longer shimmy from summit to summit.
The dispute over money also costs trust in politics, trust in a solution to the acute migration situation. This helps above all populists and right-wing extremists. The AfD is already at the poll high in East Germany.
Also read: How many refugees live in Germany? An overview of asylum numbers
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