German Interior Minister Nancy Weser believes the shipwreck off Italy’s southern coast, which killed dozens of migrants last weekend, shows the need for more legal options for immigration. She said it in Berlin on Monday. It described the disaster as a “terrible tragedy renewed” and called for a more effective war against irregular migration, such as smuggling networks.
“We will not let this need weaken us but continue to work, despite great resistance, so that human rights and migration management are much more protected than has been the case until now,” she told the DPA. “The German government has initiated a radical change in immigration policy by facilitating legal immigration, reducing irregular migration through agreements with countries of origin and protecting the EU’s external borders.”
“Legal action led by the reformed Frontex, the European Union’s border control agency, was required,” she continued. “If migrants can enter legally according to clear criteria, the people smugglers’ business model will be disrupted.”
Last month, the number of new arrivals to Germany increased by 70.9 percent compared to the same month two years ago. She explained that “7,587 people without the correct papers entered Germany, an increase that was also noticeable in 2022 and has only increased.” In 2022, 92,000 illegal immigrants entered Germany, up from 57,600 in 2021.
Various federal governments in Germany are struggling to absorb immigrants and have asked the federal government for more funds for housing, education, childcare, and other programs.
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