Managed migration in Germany
Recent stories
National uniform citizenship test debated and rejected
Various German states have introduced citizenship tests.
9 May 2006 (264 words)
Baden Württemberg: discriminatory citizenship test introduced
The state of Baden-Württemberg, governed by the Liberal FDP, has introduced rules for citizenship applicants from fifty-seven Islamic countries (candidates from other countries will be subjected to the procedures in exceptional cases).
22 March 2006 (976 words)
Hesse citizenship test introduced
Hesse interior minister, Volker Bouffier, has put forward a six-point programme for citizenship, requiring applicants to have sufficient knowledge of the German language, to confirm their loyalty to the country and to complete an extensive questionnaire.
22 March 2006 (491 words)
Forced marriages increasingly highlighted in integration debate
The German interior ministry has drafted changes to the law on aliens to make forced marriages, prostitution and people smuggling more difficult.
15 March 2006 (330 words)
Debate on forced marriages condemned by political scientists
On 2 February, the weekly Die Zeit published a statement 'Justice for the Muslims' signed by fifty-eight scientists, including migration experts, accusing female authors of populist non-fiction books on Islam of having written works which make social generalisations from personal experience and individual cases.
15 March 2006 (196 words)
Lower Saxony proposes citizenship course
Uwe Schünemann (CDU), interior minister of Lower Saxony, wants applicants for German citizenship to have to take a course in citizenship.
2 February 2006 (65 words)
Integration plan launched
On 23 November, integration minister Marieluise Beck (Green party) issued a 20-point strategy for fighting extremism and promoting integration.
27 November 2004 (484 words)
Bavaria bans teacher headscarves
Bavaria has followed Lower Saxony, Baden-Württemberg and Saarland in banning Muslim teachers from wearing headscarves.
14 November 2004 (52 words)
Germany needs more immigrants
Ironically, in the light of comments by Helmut Schmidt Germany's expert commission on immigration and integration says that 25,000 qualified immigrants are needed to fill gaps in the service industry in 2005.
22 October 2004 (130 words)
Deportation of race hate victims
A row has broken out between senior politicians because of the decision to deport two men who had earlier been victims of racial attacks.
24 September 2004 (131 words)
Schily bans Islamic conference
Interior Minister Schily was working with Berlin city officials to prevent an Islamic conference scheduled for three days in October.
17 September 2004 (89 words)
Berlin to ban religious symbols
The Interior Minister of Berlin has introduced a bill to ban the display of any religious symbols - Muslim headscarves, Jewish skullcaps, Christian crosses - from the public sector workplace.
25 July 2004 (213 words)
Mandatory language classes introduced
Language classes for new immigrants will be made mandatory under the new immigration law and penalties will be imposed for those who refuse to attend.
17 June 2004 (55 words)
Catholic funding to curb spread of Islam
According to a report in the Welt am Sonntag (May 30) the Vatican is pumping huge amounts of funds into the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples, a reportedly secret organisation, as a way of stemming the spread of Islam.
31 May 2004 (83 words)
States move to ban headscarf after Constitutional Court ruling
In September, the Constitutional Court ruled, in the case of Fereshta Ludin, that the wearing of the Muslim headscarf does not violate the current law on freedom of religion and religious neutrality of educators.
13 November 2003 (1029 words)
Bavaria: interior minister proposes expulsion of 'violently-inclined Islamists'
The CSU interior minister of Bavaria, Günter Beckstein, wants strict new laws to deal with 'violently-inclined Islamists' including the power to expel the potential perpetrators of acts of violence.
20 September 2003 (61 words)
Christian Democrat integration proposals could make languagelessons compulsory
In July, the Christian Democrats introduced proposals for a new Integration Bill whereby new immigrants to Germany would have to finance and then pass a stiff language test and attend 900 hours of classes on the German legal system, culture and history or face cuts in welfare and unemployment benefits.
12 July 2003 (149 words)
Muslim rights, the law and the integration debate
In January, Germany's highest court ruled that Muslim butchers can slaughter animals according to Islamic ritual, challenging previous state regulations that granted exemption only for kosher handling under Jewish law.
1 August 2002 (344 words)
Germany assists Georgia in border controls
Germany's border inspectorate has signed a co-operation protocol with its Georgian counterparts, promising assistance, including the training of Georgian border guards, to fight illegal migration and the trade in drugs and weapons.
1 October 2001 (44 words)
Border deaths
One immigrant of unknown nationality died and three others were injured after the car in which they were attempting to cross the border at Putzkau, Bautzen, East Saxony spun out of control following a police chase.
1 October 2001 (90 words)
Related links
Forschungsgesellschaft Flucht und Migration
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