The personal rating of Angela Merkel is decreasing; contradictions among supporters of the German Chancellor are becoming clearer and clearer, while the inflow of refugees from the Middle East is constantly growing. In September alone, Germany received 200 thousand people who were escaping from war. Experts believe that the government forecast that 800 thousand refugees will come to the country by the end of 2015 is too optimistic and doesn’t match the real picture. For example, the Interior Minister of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lorenz Caffier, has the same view. According to Bild, which cites secret documents of the government, the number of refugees may reach 1.5 million people by the end of the year.
Such developments couldn’t but influence attitudes among common citizens. According to a public opinion poll by ARD Public Television, 51% of respondents are afraid of the inflow of refugees in Germany. Three weeks ago their number was only 38%. 6% of respondents are now ready to vote for the radical right-wing party of AfD. This party used to be considered as a marginal party which is associated with the nationalist movement of PEGIDA; but now it has theoretical chances to get to the parliament. At the same time, the ruling parties of CDS and CSU, which traditionally took the right wing of the German politics, lost 2%. Angela Merkel’s personal rating fell by 9 points. According to sociologists, such tendencies are a direct reaction by German citizens to unsatisfactory activities of the government in the current crisis.
According to results of another sociological institute – Initiative Markt- und Sozialforschung e.V., 59% if respondents believe that Merkel's policy toward refugees is wrong. 90% stand for launching a certain limit on a number of refugees who can be accepted by the country. Finally, 72% of respondents wish that the receiving of refuges was stopped now. Social networks and forums are full of comments by German citizens who are indignant with the fact that Angela Merkel doesn’t intend to solve the main problem.
The situation was worsened by sincere statements by the Interior Minister of Germany, Thomas de Maizière, who publicly criticized “ingratitude” of a part of refugees and their incline to violence and absence of discipline. By the way, different views of Merkel and de Maizière on the migration issue is not a secret in Germany. According to Spiegel, the problem of supervision and coordination of the process of receiving refugees is not being solved by the Interior Ministry anymore, due to Merkel’s insistence; it is being controlled by a special department of the Chancellor’s Administration.
Meanwhile, the situation in Syria – the main “exporter” of refugees – after Russia’s actual joining the military campaign on the side of Bashar Assad, is being developed, according to an unpredictable scenario. If the Syrian army achieves military successes under the coverage of the Russian Air Forces, the inflow of migrants from the regions where the Sunni population dominates will radically increase, as they will fear revenge by Bashar Assad’s units. There is a big question whether the German government can develop an effective concept on settlement of the migration crisis. Angela Merkel is going to speak at the public television on October 7th. She will define priorities in the migration issue. Today one thing is obvious: the current course by the Chancellor doesn’t satisfy a big part of the German population, and right-wing radical parties and movements are trying to use it to reach the middle class. It is a very difficult, but not impossible task to defeat the radical right-wing forces without using nationalist populism. Angela Merkel has to find a fragile balance between the policy of values and her dissatisfied citizens.
