Vorpommern-Rügen’s district administrator calls for more honesty from politicians in the migration debate. He invites the federal government to Germany’s north-eastern district.
Stralsund (dpa / mv) – The District Administrator of Vorpommern-Rügen, Stefan Kerth, has warned against whitewashing in the discussion about refugees and migrants. “We have a credibility and honesty problem in this debate,” said the SPD politician to the German Press Agency. Instead of acknowledging the facts, such as the fact that only a small proportion of the refugees have any prospect of staying, those responsible hid behind cloudy arguments.
Kerth demanded more honesty. It doesn’t always need new peaks either. What is needed instead are talks with local people who are active in working with immigrants. He expressly invites representatives of the federal government to Vorpommern-Rügen. Instead of succumbing to bans on thinking out of fear and supporting right-wing tendencies, one has to face the facts.
Kerth said that the fact that this does not happen is a big explosive – at the latest when gyms are occupied again. There had already been tough debates during the strong influx of people in 2015/2016, but the problems had not been fundamentally solved. Kerth said that the principle of hope probably also ruled to a certain extent in Berlin. It was clear that certain debates would flare up again immediately when more people came.
One problem is that refugees often have no identity papers. In his district, the identity of those affected could not be determined in 350 cases. It is an open secret that the passport will suddenly reappear as soon as it opens up the possibility of legal residence. “We firmly believe that it is a tactical lack of identification papers.”
Kerth pointed out that Denmark, with its social democratic government, had taken measures that worked. Only those who can identify themselves are allowed to come there.
The district administrator also brought into play to rely more on benefits in kind instead of money for the people. “All the levers you have have to be tested,” Kerth said. “At the moment I don’t have the impression at all that this is really being done in the coalition.”
The district administrator also made it clear: “I have total understanding for every single person who arrives here.” This also applies if those affected have not fled from a threat or “directly from a cannonball”. He also doesn’t blame people morally who come to improve their living conditions. That’s only human. But the state must make sensible decisions and not out of opportunity. “We just have to act with a cooler head because we’re just reaching our limits.”
In the Vorpommern-Rügen district, 30 refugees and migrants are currently arriving every week. That doesn’t sound like much at first, but that’s 1,500 people a year who have to be accommodated. In addition, all quotas are actually exhausted by the influx from the Ukraine. “It will overwhelm us at some point.” Accommodation is only the first step. It also needs daycare and school places and integration work.