Merkel delivers her speech at the CDU conference in Karlsruhe.
On the 14th of December, 2015, Angela Merkel delivered a speech to fellow CDU( Christian Democratic Union) members on the refugee crisis in Europe. One year into Germany’s open door policy for refugees and asylum seekers, Merkel addressed concerns and hopes regarding the crisis. According to coverage by The Independent, a newspaper based in the UK, Merkel told the Audience that they “face the biggest refugee crisis since the Second World War.” In her speech, Merkel, though still hopeful for the future, acknowledged the challenges that Germany and Europe still face.
Merkel’s speech came at a time when public support for the refugee influx, as well as her leadership, was dwindling; The Independent reported that “opinion polls show that some 60 per cent of Germans want a halt to the refugee influx.”Despite such growing discontentedness, the speech made clear that Merkel and her party plan to stand by their plan for Germany, with some slight alteration. She vowed to reduce the influx, perhaps in recognition of growing support for such a decision, but refused to place a cap on refugees, refusing the demands of more conservative groups.
Many saw Merkel’s speech as a great success: It garnered a nine-minute standing ovation, and various publications, from the US to Germany, called it a success. It provides a look at the CDU’s position during a tumultuous period of the European migrant crisis. Though the speech was received well by the audience and parts of the media, it should be acknowledged that public support for Merkel had gone down throughout 2015, as many continue to disagree with her policies on immigration and asylum.
George Horowitz