German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser of the Social Democratic Party proposed deporting members of “criminal” Arab clans even without committing a crime, which sparked widespread controversy in human rights circles.
The draft paper notes that “members of organized crime communities” can lose their right to residency “regardless if they have a criminal conviction.”
A spokesman for the ministry said the aim was to facilitate “the deportation of members of the so-called organized clans.” According to “Amal, Berlin!” website.
The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper reported that in the past, there were only similar laws to combat terrorism, to allow the state to deport those associated with terrorist groups, and thus increase the state’s ability to fight crime.
This proposal sparked great interest and controversy over its compatibility with the principles of human rights and justice.
Sources expect that in-depth discussions about its suitability and content will take place in the coming months, including negotiation with states and local governments.
According to the Ministry of the Interior, this proposal is not representative of the government coalition, but rather an initiative put forward by some German states, following discussions that took place in May between the state interior ministers with the Federal Ministry of the Interior.
While the Green Party rejected the proposal of the German Interior Minister to deport relatives of suspected “criminal” clans, the head of the party said: “The ruling coalition has agreed to reform the practice of deportation and make it more effective… It is our final word that regulations outside the rule of law will never be up for discussion. This also applies to procedures that treat unconvicted relatives of criminals in the same way as criminals.” As reported by “Amal, Berlin!”.
A discussion paper put forward by the interior ministry states that deportation should indeed be possible if the facts justify a conclusion that a person was or continues to be part of a criminal organization.
The criticism of the Green Party was not limited to the proposal only, but legal experts considered the idea controversial, and questioned its usefulness within the legal frameworks.
While members of the Christian Democratic Union Party believe that the proposal is only part of Minister Faeser’s election campaign, especially since Faeser is the first candidate of the Social Democratic Party for the Hessen state elections scheduled for October 8th.
Other critics said the interior minister’s proposal raises concerns about basic rights.
In an attempt to defuse the anger, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Interior explained that deportation according to this regulation requires a clear link to criminal activities and that family affiliation to the clan alone is not sufficient.
A spokeswoman for the Ministry of Interior said earlier that the aim of this proposed change is to “facilitate the process of deporting members of clan structures more easily in the future.”
This proposal is based on the results of a federal meeting that took place in May last year, in which it was agreed on multiple amendments to the laws on asylum and foreigners. The scope of these regulations is to be expanded to include the concept of “clan structure,” according to the report.
It is noteworthy that the criminal acts attributed to the Arab clans in the cities raise great concern to the security authorities. The authorities classify these acts as serious crimes that cause significant harm to society, including acts of organized crime such as drug trafficking, robbery and violence.
Last month, violent clashes took place in German cities in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, especially in Essen and Castrop-Rauxel, between Lebanese and Syrian immigrants.
According to German reports, the Federal Criminal Office in several states is working to pursue what has come to be known as the “Arab clan gangs” since mid-2019, the authorities have been working on these groups for committing organized crime in a manner that resembles that of the mafia, in addition to their control and domination over the drug and contraband market, extorting protection money and harassing German and foreign residents of the suburbs.
