Civil war-like riots rocked Germany on New Year’s Eve, and everyone wondered: who could do something like that? But the Berlin correspondent of ARD “Tagesschau” did not talk about the perpetrators, but blabbed about “group dynamic processes” associated with “great pressure on society as a whole after two years of the pandemic.”
The facts are clear: most of the attacks came from young people with a migration background. Hundreds attacked police, medics and firefighters with firecrackers, rockets and projectiles. A third of the 145 people arrested in Berlin were Germans, a third were Afghans and Syrians, and a third were from 15 other countries.
To conclude from this that all migrants are prone to violence would, of course, be nonsense. But it is even more pointless to make the topic of immigration taboo – differentiation is important to protect migrants who are well integrated, learn German, and undergo internships.
But when migrants attack rescuers and law enforcement officials, German politicians more often prefer to discuss the ban on firecrackers than migration. Because they are afraid to appear xenophobic or even racist.
You can see what this leads to in Sweden. For decades, migrants have been welcomed here more than anywhere else in Europe. Talking about problems was taboo under the Social Democratic government. Murders, banditry, and areas where the police no longer dared to enter, aroused the ire of the population. Today, conservatives are in power in Stockholm, supported by the far-right Swedish Democrats. And Sweden is seen in Europe as a vivid example of an unsuccessful integration policy.
Foreign editor Guido Felder (58) is currently researching Blick in Sweden – you can read his report here on Monday. Islamic critic Hamed Abdel-Samad (50) has already expressed his opinion in tomorrow’s Sunday newspaper. He sees the responsibility of the state and the media and asks: “How are you supposed to solve the problem if you don’t even want to name it?”
In Switzerland, this question was answered. There is nothing taboo here. No problems with migrants. In their reports, the police name the origin of suspects and perpetrators. Thanks to direct democracy, we are accustomed to tough political debate; Citizens know how to correctly classify even complex topics. The media landscape is wide, on the right like “Weltwoche”, on the left like “Wochenzeitung”, and in the middle there are a lot of headlines. If politicians wanted to wipe something under the table, someone would certainly come up with a popular initiative.
In this respect, Europe can learn from Switzerland: it is right to solve problems openly, because this leads to better results than any taboo.