From Open-Door to Integration Politics and Toleration Policy in Germany’s Asylum System

Abstract

Germany accepted over 1 million refugees in 2015-2016 by announcing an “open-door refugee policy” and suspension of the Dublin Regulation. Although Germany adopted a generous welcome policy and “integration politics”, many asylum seekers were not granted refugee status. This policy has raised the questions of whether Germany has received too many refugees, burden sharing, whether refugees pose a security risk and a threat. Germany quickly changed its policy and started to implement restrictive asylum policies. The German asylum system has four forms of protection: refugee, asylum, subsidiary protection, and a ban on deportation (toleration-Duldung). This paper aims to prepare a framework of implementations from 2015 and to examine transformation in integration politics and toleration status. Rejected asylum seekers may be granted a tolerated stay under certain circumstances such as education, work, and health issues, but toleration status is still temporary, uncertain, and hinders integration. On the other hand, the latest amendments facilitate the integration of people in toleration status who demonstrate the potential to integrate and have a chance of staying permanently in Germany.

Keywords

• German Asylum System
• Toleration-Duldung
• Integration Politics
• Migration Management
• International Migration

Alman Sığınma Sisteminde Açık Kapıdan Entegrasyon Siyasetine Geçiş ve Tolerans Politikası

Öz

Almanya 2015-2016 yıllarında “açık kapı politikası” uygulayacağını ve Dublin Düzenlemelerini askıya aldığını açıklayarak 1 milyondan fazla mülteciyi kabul etmiştir. Almanya cömert bir mülteci politikası ve “entegrasyon siyaseti” uygulamasına rağmen çoğu sığınmacıya mülteci statüsü vermemiştir. Bu politika, Almanya’nın çok fazla mülteci alıp almadığı, yük paylaşımı, mültecilerin güvenlik riski ve tehdit olup olmadığı sorularını ortaya çıkarmıştır. Almanya hızlıca politikasını değiştirmiş ve sınırlayıcı sığınma politikaları uygulamaya başlamıştır. Alman sığınma sisteminde dört tür koruma bulunmaktadır: Mülteci, sığınmacı, ek koruma ve sınır dışı etmenin yasaklanması (Tolerans-Duldung). Bu makale, 2015 yılından itibaren sığınmacı sayısını kısıtlamaya yönelik uygulamaların çerçevesini oluşturmayı, entegrasyon siyaseti ve tolerans statüsünün değişimini incelemeyi amaçlamaktadır. Başvurusu reddedilen sığınmacıların eğitim, çalışma, sağlık gibi belirli koşulları karşılamaları halinde ülkede kalmasına (tolerans) izin verilmekle birlikte tolerans statüsü hala geçici, belirsiz ve entegrasyonu engelleyen bir statüdür. Diğer taraftan, son değişiklikler tolerans statüsündeki kişilerin entegre olma potansiyellerini (hak etme) göstermeleri halinde entegrasyonuna ve Almanya’da sürekli kalma imkanına sahip olmalarına olanak sağlamaktadır.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Alman Sığınma sistemi
• Tolerans-Duldung
• Entegrasyon Siyaseti
• Göç Yönetimi
• Uluslararası göç

References

1. Abraham, D. (2016). From migration crisis to immigration and integration regime. University of Miami Legal Studies. https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2746659
2. Baume, M. de L. (2017, Ağustos 27). Angela Merkel defends open border migration policy. POLITICO. https://www.politico.eu/article/angela-merkel-defends-open-border-migration-refugee-policy-germany/
3. Betts, A. (2009). Forced migration and global politics. Wiley Blackwell Publication.
4. Bierbach, M. (2018, Nisan 4). A brief history of refugees who escaped to Germany. InfoMigrants. https://www.infomigrants.net/en/post/8463/a-brief-history-of-refugees-who-escaped-to-germany
5. Bird, M. (2015, Eylül 9). Germany’s history explains why it’s so accepting of refugees-And why it wants austerity for Greece. Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/germanys-history-explains-why-its-so-accepting-of-refugees-and-why-it-wants-austerity-for-greece-2015-9
6. Bundesministerium des Innern, für Bau und Heimat (2020). Abschiebungen und ausreisen im ersten halbjahr 2020 (Drucksache 19/21149). https://www.bundestag.de/presse/hib/707192-707192
7. Gesetz über Duldung bei Ausbildung und Beschaftigung, Bundesgesetzblatt Jahrgang 2019 Teil Nr.26 (2019). https://www.bgbl.de/xaver/bgbl/media/5B2B066D608FF657777F7A1F6FD2183B/bgbl119s1021_77668.pdf
8. Bunyan, T. (1997). Key texts on Justice and Home Affairs in the European Union: 1976-1993 Vol 1. Statewatch

9. Castles, S., Korac, M., Vasta, E., & Vertovec, S. (2002). Integration: Mapping the field (Home Office Online Report Sy 29/3). Home Office. https://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20110218135832/http:/rds.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs2/rdsolr2803.doc
10. Dimova, R. (2006). From protection to ordeal: Duldung status and Bosnians in Berlin (Working Paper No:87). Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology. https://pure.mpg.de/pubman/faces/ViewItemOverviewPage.jsp?itemId=item_922942_3
11. EMN. (2016). Approaches to rejected asylum seekers in Germany (Working Paper 69). Federal Office for Migration and Refugees. https://ec.europa.eu/home-affairs/sites/homeaffairs/files/what-we-do/networks/european_migration_network/reports/docs/emn-studies/emn-studies-11a_germany_rejected_asylum_seekers_en.pdf
12. EMN. (2018). Asylum and migration glossary 6.0: A tool for better comparability produced by the European Migration Network. European Commission. https://ec.europa.eu/home-affairs/sites/homeaffairs/files/what-we-do/networks/european_migration_network/docs/interactive_glossary_6.0_final_version.pdf
13. European Asylum Support Office. (2020). EASO asylum report 2020: Annual report on the situation of asylum in the European Union. https://data.europa.eu/doi/10.2847/531878
14. European Migration Network. (2010). Organisation of asylum and migration policies in the EU Member States. https://ec.europa.eu/home-affairs/sites/homeaffairs/files/what-we-do/networks/european_migration_network/reports/docs/emn-studies/migration-policies/00._emn_synthesis_report_organisation_of_asylum_and_migration_policies_august_2010_en.pdf
15. Federal Ministry of the Interior, Building and Community. (2018, Temmuz 10). The Migration Master Plan. http://www.bmi.bund.de/SharedDocs/kurzmeldungen/EN/2018/07/masterplan.html;jsessionid=24DF55E49D648029D4A53EFBA7A7B5AB.1_cid287?nn=9919724
16. Federal Office for Migration and Refugees. (2015). Migration, integration, asylum: Political developments in Germany 2014. European Migration Network. https://www.bamf.de/SharedDocs/Anlagen/EN/EMN/Politikberichte/emn-politikbericht-2014-germany.pdf?__blob=publicationFile&v=6
17. Federal Office for Migration and Refugees. (2019). The stages of the German asylum procedure: An overview of the individual procedural steps and the legal basis. https://www.bamf.de/SharedDocs/Anlagen/EN/AsylFluechtlingsschutz/Asylverfahren/das-deutsche-asylverfahren.pdf?__blob=publicationFile&v=12
18. Federal Statistical Office. (2020, Temmuz 28). Current population. https://www.destatis.de/EN/Themes/Society-Environment/Population/Current-Population/_node.html
19. Funk, N. (2016). A spectre in Germany: Refugees, a ‘Welcome Culture’ and an ‘Integration Politics’. Journal of Global Ethics, 12(3), 289-299. https://doi/full/10.1080/17449626.2016.1252785.
20. Gesley, J. (2016, Ağustos 15). Germany: Act to integrate refugees enters into force. Global Legal Monitor. https://www.loc.gov/item/global-legal-monitor/2016-08-15/germany-act-to-integrate-refugees-enters-into-force/
21. Gesley, J. (2017). Germany: The Development of migration and citizenship law in postwar Germany. The Law Library of Congress, Global Research Center. https://www.loc.gov/law/help/migration-citizenship/germany.php
22. Gräßler, B. (2005, Ocak 1). First German immigration law takes effect Deutsche Welle. https://www.dw.com/en/first-german-immigration-law-takes-effect/a-1442681
23. Handbook Germany. (2020a). Duldung. https://handbookgermany.de/tr/rights-laws/asylum/duldung.html
24. Handbook Germany. (2020b). Rejected asylum. https://handbookgermany.de/en/rights-laws/asylum/rejected-asylum.html
25. Hanewinkel, V., & Oltmer, J. (2018, Ocak 12). Refuge and Asylum in Germany. Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung. https://www.bpb.de/gesellschaft/migration/laenderprofile/262813/refuge-and-asylum-in-germany
26. IOM. (2004). International migration law: Glossary on migration. https://publications.iom.int/system/files/pdf/iml_34_glossary.pdf
27. Kant, I. (1795). Perpetual peace: A Philosophical Sketch. http://fs2.american.edu/dfagel/www/Class%20Readings/Kant/Immanuel%20Kant,%20_Perpetual%20Peace_.pdf
28. Karakoç Dora, Z. (2020). Doğu Avrupa’nın din merkezli göçmen politikaları. Hitit Üniversitesi İlahiyat Fakültesi Dergisi-Journal of Divinity Faculty of Hitit University, 19(1), 35-62. https://doi.org/10.14395/hititilahiyat.705788
29. Kirchhoff, M., & Lorenz, D. (2018). Between illegalization, toleration and recognition: Contested asylum and deportation policies in Germany. İçinde S. Rosenberger, V. Stern, & N. Merhaut (Eds.), Protest movements in asylum and deportation (ss.49-68). Springer International Publishing.
30. Konle-Seidl, R. (2018). Integration of refugees in Austria, Germany and Sweden: Comparative analysis. European Parliament.https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/STUD/2018/614200/IPOL_STU(2018)614200_EN.pdf
31. Koop, K. (2019). Op-ed: Detention, insecurity, rights deprivation–The legal crackdown on asylum seekers in Germany. European Council on Refugees and Exiles Weekly Bulletin. https://www.ecre.org/detention-insecurity-rights-deprivation-the-legal-crackdown-on-asylum-seekers-in-germany/
32. Korntheuer, A. (2017). Germany’s refugee protection sytem. İçinde A. Korntheuer, P. Pritchard, & D. B. Maehler (Eds.), Structural context of refugee integration in Canada and Germany (ss. 37-41). GESIS, Leibniz Institut für Sozialwissenschaften.
33. Leise, E. (2007, Nisan 5). Germany to regularize “Tolerated” asylum seekers. The Online Journal of the Migration Policy Institute. https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/germany-regularize-tolerated-asylum-seekers
34. Council Directive 2001/55/EC, (2001). https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A32001L0055
35. Oltmer, J. (2016). Germany and global refugees: A history of the Present. CESifo DICE Report, Ifo Institut-Leibniz-Institut Für Wirtschaftsforschung an Der Universität München, München, 14(4), 26-31.
36. Poutrus, P. G. (2014). Asylum in postwar Germany: Refugee admission policies and their practical implementation in the Federal Republic and the GDR between the late 1940s and the mid-1970s. Journal of Contemporary History, 49(1), 115-133. https://doi:10.1177/0022009413505667
37. Rietig, V. (2016). Moving beyond crisis: Germany’s new approaches to integrating refugees into the labor market. Migration Policy Instıtute. https://www.migrationpolicy.org/research/moving-beyond-crisis-germany-new-approaches-integrating-refugees-labor-market
38. Rietig, V., & Müller, A. (2016). The new Reality: Germany adapts to its role as a major migrant magnet. Migrationpolicy. https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/new-reality-germany-adapts-its-role-major-migrant-magnet
39. Sökefeld, M. (2019). Nations rebound: German politics of deporting Afghans. IQAS, 50(1-2), 91-118. https://doi:10.11588/iqas.2019.1-2.10341
40. Stevens, D. (2017). Asylum, refugee protection and the European response to Syrian migration". Journal of Human Rights Practice, 9(2), 184-189. https://doi: 10.1093/jhuman/hux016
41. Stokes, L. (2019). The permanent refugee crisis in the Federal Republic of Germany, 1949. Central European History, 52(1), 19-44. https://doi: 10.1017/S0008938919000025
42. Strang, A., & Ager, A. (2010). Refugee integration: Emerging trends and remaining agendas". Journal of Refugee Studies, 23(4), 589-607. https://doi:10.1093/jrs/feq046
43. Tize, C. (2020). Living in permanent temporariness: The multigenerational ordeal of living under Germany’s toleration status". Journal of Refugee Studies, fez119. https://doi:10.1093/jrs/fez119
44. UNHCR. (2010). Convention and Protokol Relating to the Status of Refugees. https://www.unhcr.org/protection/basic/3b66c2aa10/convention-protocol-relating-status-refugees.html
45. UNHCR. (2020). Global trends: Forced displacement in 2019. https://www.unhcr.org/flagship-reports/globaltrends/globaltrends2019/
46. United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs Population Division. (2019). International migration 2019: Report (ST/ESA/SER.A/438). https://www.un.org/en/development/desa/population/migration/publications/migrationreport/docs/InternationalMigration2019_Report.pdf
47. Universal Declaration of Human Rights. (1948). https://www.un.org/en/universal-declaration-human-rights/
48. Üstün, M. T. (2021). Göçün güvenlikleştirilmesi ve FRONTEX operasyonları. İçinde İ. Kalaycı ve G. Kalmış (Eds.), Çağlar boyu göç (tarih-kültür-medeniyet) (ss. 379–400). Gazi Kitabevi.
49. Zetter, R. (2007). More labels, fewer refugees: Remaking the refugee label in an era of globalization. Journal of Refugee Studies, 20(2), 172-192. https://doi:10.1093/jrs/fem011
50. Zoungrana, W. (2020). No country for migrants? Critical perspectives on asylum, immigration, and integration in Germany. Leiden: BRILL.