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The AfD: Germany’s new opposition hampered by sloppy research and poor German

When the Alternative for Germany (AfD) rode a wave of anger at Germany’s refugee policies to win 12.6 percent of the vote in last year’s election, they promised to “hunt down” the mainstream parties. So far their record has been rather less effective.

The AfD: Germany’s new opposition hampered by sloppy research and poor German
Alexander Gauland. Photo: DPA

After the Social Democrats voted to join a new coalition government with Angela Merkel on Sunday, they paved the way for the far-right AfD to become the official opposition in the Bundestag.

The AfD are the largest party in the Bundestag outside of the SPD and Merkel's Christian Union, meaning they take over the role of opposition enjoyed by Die Linke during the last parliament.

This is largely a ceremonial task – the opposition have the first right to reply to a parliamentary speech by the government. Unlike in Britain for instance, there is no shadow cabinet in Germany. But being opposition ensures more public exposure for the AfD than for the Free Democrats (FDP), the Greens and Die Linke, the other small parties in the current parliament.

Just how effective the AfD will be in the role remains to be seen. Their leader, Alexander Gauland, boisterously claimed that the AfD would “hunt down” the establishment when election results rolled in last September.

But since they first took up seats in the Bundestag a month later, their parliamentary record has displayed an often embarrassing lack of research, critics say.

Opposing politicians initially decried the “nationalist tone” of the AfD's Bundestag rhetoric. More recently, though, they have complained about poor research and the imprecise wording of their proposed legal changes.

In a recent debate on the reduction of bureaucracy for tradesmen for example, the AfD had to be instructed by other MPs that the problems they raised had already been dealt within under a law which came into force in January.

The wording of the AfD's official statements has also become a source of mirth among their opponents.

In a press release on German prostitution laws, AfD MP Martin Sichert said that the consequences of the prostitution law of 2002 were “more than sober” (he meant to say sobering). Sichert failed to mention in the press release that the law was updated in 2016 to reflect what the government itself found to be significant failings in the 2002 version.

Kay Gottschalk, deputy chair of the AfD, said that some of the complaints were a strategy by the other parties to humiliate them, but he conceded that there was “room for improvement”.

“Beginners are allowed to make mistakes. We still haven’t hired into all the assistant and researcher roles we have advertised,” he said.

Gottschalk claimed that it has been hard to find the right people for the roles as many candidates have dropped out, fearing what having the AfD on their CV would do for their future career prospects.

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GERMAN CITIZENSHIP

German conservatives vow to overturn dual citizenship if re-elected

Foreigners in Germany are waiting on tenterhooks for the introduction of the new dual nationality law on Thursday - but the centre-right CDU and CSU say they would overturn the reform if re-elected next year.

German conservatives vow to overturn dual citizenship if re-elected

“The CDU and CSU will reverse this unsuccessful reform,” Alexander Throm (CDU), spokesperson on domestic policy for the CDU/CSU parliamentary group, told DPA on Tuesday.

“Dual citizenship must remain the exception and be limited to countries that share our values.”

Throm also criticised the new citizenship law for reducing the amount of time foreigners need to live in the country before naturalising as Germans, describing the new residence requirements as “far too short”.

“After five or even three years, it is not yet possible to determine with certainty whether integration has been successful in the long term,” he stated.

“The recent caliphate demonstrations and the rampant Islamist extremism, often by people with German passports, must be a wake-up call for us all.”

READ ALSO: Which foreign residents are likely to become German after citizenship law change?

Despite vociferous opposition, the alliance between the Christian Democrats (CDU) and their Bavarian sister party (CSU) was powerless to stop the traffic-light coalition’s citizenship reform passing in both the Bundestag and Bundesrat earlier this year. 

The reform, which permits the holding of multiple passports, lowers residence requirements and removes language hurdles for certain groups, is set to come into force on June 27th. 

But with the CDU and CSU emerging as clear winners in the recent EU parliamentary elections and regularly landing on 30 percent or above in the polls, it’s possible that the party could be on course to re-enter government next year. 

In this situation, the centre-right parties have pledged to try and undo what senior CDU politicians have described as a “dangerous” reform.

“It is not unusual for successive governments to reverse decisions made by the previous government,” Andrea Lindholz, the head of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group said in a recent response to a question

“We will maintain our position on this and will continue to strive for a corresponding change.”

READ ALSO: What are citizenship offices around Germany doing to prepare for the new law?

Whether the CDU and CSU can secure enough votes at both state and federal elections to change the law in the future remains to be seen.

The parties may also have to compromise on their plans with any future coalition partner, such as the Greens, Social Democrats (SPD) or Free Democrats (FDP), all of whom support liberal immigration laws and the holding of multiple nationalities. 

‘Citizenship devaluation law’

The CDU and CSU parties, which form a centre-right alliance nicknamed the Union, have long been opposed to dual nationality in Germany.

During their years of governing in a so-called grand coalition with the centre-right Social Democrats (SPD), the parties had regularly made reforms of citizenship one of their red lines, citing the danger of hostile nations influencing Germany from within. 

In a recent parliamentary speech back in January, Throm had slammed the bill as a “citizenship devaluation law” and accused the government of trying to generate a new electorate to win votes.

CDU politician Alexander Throm speaks in a debate in the German Bundestag

CDU politician Alexander Throm speaks in a debate in the German Bundestag. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Christoph Soeder

In comments aimed primarily at Germany’s large Turkish diaspora, the CDU politician claimed that people who had lived in Germany for decades but not taken German citizenship had already chosen their old country over Germany.

The majority of Turks in Germany are also supporters of the authoritarian president Recep Erdogan, he argued.

Responding to the claims, FDP migration expert Ann-Veruschka Jurisch said the opposition was fuelling resentments against migrants by claiming the government was “squandering German citizenship”.

In fact, she argued, the reform has tightened up requirements by ensuring that people who claim benefits and cannot support themselves are unable to become German citizens.

READ ALSO: What you need to know about Germany’s citizenship law reform

In addition, the B1 language requirements have only been softened in a few exceptional cases, for example to honour the lifetime achievements of the guest worker generation who had few opportunities when they arrived, Jurisch said. 

If foreigners have committed crimes, the authorities will be able to investigate whether these involved racist or anti-Semitic motives before citizenship is granted, she added. 

With reporting by DPA

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