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Germany pushes back 80 percent vaccination target

Amid stalling vaccination rates over the holiday period, Germany has extended its deadline to the end of January for when 80 percent of its population should have received at least one dose of the Covid-19 vaccine .

The entrance of the vaccination centre at the former 'International Congress Center' (ICC) in Berlin
The entrance of the vaccination centre at the former 'International Congress Center' (ICC) in Berlin on December 20th, 2021. Tobias SCHWARZ / AFP

A government spokesperson confirmed the extension to ARD-Hauptstadtstudio TV on Sunday. The deadline was originally set for January 7th. 

Currently, 61.4 million people in Germany ,or 73.8 percent of the population, have had at least one jab against Covid-19. To achieve the government’s 80 percent target, around five million more people need to receive their first dose.

Vaccination centres and doctors’ surgeries are closed on public holidays in many cities across Germany, so although there are special vaccination campaigns over Christmas and New Year, the rate at which people are getting jabbed has slowed considerably.

According to the Robert Koch Institute, around 67,000 Covid-19 vaccinations, including 51,000 boosters, were carried out on Christmas Eve. Two days earlier, on Wednesday, the figures were significantly higher: 710,000 vaccinations, including 561,000 booster jabs.

To increase uptake, politicians have been discussing making the Covid-19 vaccine mandatory in the wider population. The issue is on the table for discussion in parliament when it returns in the new year.

In a recommendation published on Wednesday, the German Ethics Council came out in favour of extending the recently adopted compulsory vaccination for staff in healthcare institutions to “significant sections of the population”.

SPD parliamentary group deputy chair Dirk Wiese told Bild am Sonntag that “an initial debate” on this would take place in the Bundestag at the start of January, explaining that the issue was not a simple one legally, with matters, such as the timeline for when someone loses their vaccination status legally and requires a booster, to be resolved.

The question of how vaccination status would be monitored and fines also remain unresolved, although German politicians have previously stated that under possible vaccine mandates, people would be fined if they refused them and never forced to take a vaccine.

And CSU head Markus Söder told Welt am Sonntag he was “convinced” that making vaccination compulsory would overcome the current divide in society rather than deepen it.

“Many people would realise that it’s not so bad to get vaccinated – and that it actually protects you and gives you freedom,” the Bavarian Minister-President said.

READ ALSO: Q&A: ‘I was against vaccine mandates in Germany – until hospitals became overwhelmed’

READ ALSO: Fact check: Could Germany legally introduce compulsory vaccination?

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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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