Merz's "cityscape" statement: "unworthy of a chancellor" according to the opposition

Berlin. A statement by Chancellor Friedrich Merz regarding the impact of migration on the cityscape has sparked a heated debate. The Left and the Green parties criticized the CDU leader and demanded an apology. Saxony's Minister President Michael Kretschmer, however, backed his party colleague. In a "top-level discussion" with "Spiegel," Kretschmer said the issue was not about immigration per se, but about upholding common values. The debate is reminiscent of previous controversies following controversial statements by Merz.

During a meeting in Potsdam on Tuesday, the Chancellor was asked by a reporter about the AfD's growing strength. He responded, among other things, that previous shortcomings in migration policy were now being corrected and progress was being made. "But of course, we still have this problem in the cityscape, and that's why the Federal Minister of the Interior is now also in the process of enabling and carrying out returns on a very large scale."

At the end of September, Bavaria's Prime Minister Markus Söder (CSU) advocated for more deportations to Afghanistan and Syria in the "Münchner Merkur" newspaper - and demanded that the cityscape must change again.

Kretschmer said of Merz, a native of Sauerland, that he comes from a region in Germany that has always experienced a lot of migration, where it's completely uncomplicated. "And to be honest, when I'm in the Rhineland, North Rhine-Westphalia, and especially in Cologne, I enjoy this relaxed togetherness." However, much has changed since 2014.

"The newspapers are full of violent acts. People who we then determine are actually legally required to leave the country," Kretschmer said. It's not enough to simply reduce the number of people coming to Germany, but we must also succeed in "enforcing our norms, our values. And there are people who come from other cultures. And perhaps we also want to say that, people who have experienced so many terrible things in their lives that they are not ready, not willing, to abide by our rules."

In addition to crime, people were also concerned about whether migrants contributed to Germany's prosperity. Those who also turned away said: "That's my position. I don't have a problem with them being there, but contribute something."

FDP General Secretary Nicole Büttner expressed similar sentiments. "I'm truly no fan of Chancellor Merz, who is burdened with debt, but if he expresses what many people in the country feel in their daily lives and no longer feel safe, then it would be a political mistake not to acknowledge that," she wrote on X. "We must take these concerns seriously."

The Greens and the Left Party, however, sharply criticized the statement. Green Party parliamentary group leader Katharina Dröge, addressing Merz in the Bundestag on Thursday, said: "How do you see the 'problem' other than based on people's skin color? How do you intend to identify this 'problem'?" The Chancellor's statement was hurtful, discriminatory, and indecent.

Green Party leader Felix Banaszak told the German Press Agency: "If the Chancellor draws conclusions about the necessity of further deportations from a cityscape, then he is sending a fatal signal." This is disrespectful, dangerous, and "unworthy of a Chancellor."

Left Party parliamentary group leader Sören Pellmann joined the Green Party's calls for an apology in the Bundestag. "The obvious slip-up in your formulation was not only misplaced, but it also placed a further thorn in our democracy," he said.

Government spokesperson Stefan Kornelius had already attempted to calm the waters on Wednesday. Asked about the connection Merz made between deportations and the cityscape, he said: "I think you're reading too much into it. The Chancellor has spoken out about the new federal government's changed course in migration policy—incidentally, in his capacity as party leader, which he also explicitly stated." Merz has always made it clear that, in his view, migration policy should not be about exclusion, but rather about uniformly regulated immigration.

The case is reminiscent of previous debates. In 2023, for example, in the context of New Year's Eve riots, Merz said about the treatment of teachers: "And then they want to call these children to order, and the result is that the fathers show up at the schools and object. Especially when it comes to female teachers, they don't want to reprimand their sons, the little pashas." This statement also sparked controversy.

RND/dpa