Cultural Dialogue Information

Thoughts on Immigration

France• Among the measures “for better management of the flow

of immigrants” announced by Gueant are a toughening of the conditions necessary to obtain French citizenship and of the rules allowing an immigrant living in France to be joined by family members.Other measures include increasing the number of expulsions of illegal immigrants and increasing the capacity of detention centers.

• Take the example of the Paris attacks, carried out by 20-year-olds. They weren’t from poor Muslim countries. But when you see the unemployment trend in France you will see the inclination [towards such acts] because discrimination results in rejection from jobs; even when you have the right degree, you send your CV and you don’t get a job. I’m not saying there is a direct link to terrorism, but it is a part of the problem.

Germany• A debate has sprung up in Germany in recent

months over a significant uptick in immigration from Romania and Bulgaria. The final limitations on the freedom of movement and access to labor markets in the European Union, which the countries joined in 2007, were lifted in January.

• Despite the statistical fact that most Bulgarians and Romanians living in Germany are gainfully employed, their presence has launched a heated discussion about the EU's freedom of movement rules and access to social welfare benefits.

Immigration policyFrance

• France has traditionally been a country with a fairly open border policy, but there have been recent efforts, as reflected in a July 2006 law, to restrict the immigration of unskilled workers and persons who would become a burden on the French State. Recent legislation has made French nationality requirements via marriage more difficult. Considerable discretionary power has been given to the French Consulates in their decisions to grant or deny visas. There has however been a streamlining of procedures for entry of professionals and group-level transfers to France.

Germany

• With the fall of the Iron Curtain and the end of travel restrictions from the former Eastern Bloc countries, an additional three million ethnic Germans returned to Germany between 1988 and 2003. Almost 2.2 million of these arrived from the former territory of the Soviet Union, with Poland (575,000) and Romania (220,000) providing the remaining flows.

• For the very first time, children born to foreigners in Germany automatically receive German citizenship, provided one parent has been a legal resident for at least eight years. Children can also hold the nationality of their parents, but must decide to be citizens of one country or the other before age 23.

Immigration vs TerrorismFrance

• The Friday evening attacks, which the Islamic State took credit for, killed more than 129 people in six separate locations across the city, in an event deemed an act of war by French President François Hollande.• France has seen an influx of

immigrants from Muslim countries, and some of them have formed insular communities.

Germany

• Germany has accumulated a thick dose of Muslim diversity and has experienced the associated violence, and we now see the word “Salafist” used increasingly in press reports. Apparently it denotes a religious sect of Muslims who are even more hostile than the standard bunch. Or perhaps it is just a handy shorthand for an Islamic unfriendly.

• Salafis model themselves after Islam’s prophet, Mohammed, and his followers and strictly follow Islamic sharia law.

• Their ideology encourages violent jihad and is shared by al Qaeda and many other Islamic terror groups. It’s now taking hold among a small but growing number of Germany’s 4.3 million Muslims.

Jihad1: a holy war waged on behalf of Islam as a religious duty; also : a personal struggle in devotion to Islam especially involving spiritual discipline 2: a crusade for a principle or belief There are 14 different types of Jihad for Muslims, but Imam Hosam Helal says it does not include offensive actions against others. The list includes hypocrisy, the devil, corrupt passions, the tongue and helping to develop a civil society. He said to isolate one, and to ignore the others, is an act of injustice in the faith.

Terrorism• Terrorism is violence intentionally

directed at a civilian population that has been designed by individuals, groups of individuals, or governments, to force a particular ideology or policy onto that people.

• Understanding why terrorism exists begins with defining what qualifies as terrorism. Often politicians skirt around the distinction, because they need to leave room to protect rebellious groups across the world that espouse useful ideologies, yet engage in questionable activities. Unfortunately, terrorists also use ambiguous definitions to help gain support for their activities and recruit reluctant individuals into their groups.

Human Migration to Europe• A logjam of refugees has since built up in

the Balkans. Numerous refugees became trapped at the Greek-Macedonian border after several governments decided to stop accepting refugees who come from countries other than Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan.

• In the refugee camps of Eastern Europe, refugees tell stories of war, oppression and terror. CalCoastNews cannot independently verify most of the stories, but many refugees say they are fleeing imminent death in their home countries.