Agency Report –
A majority of German citizens agrees with Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s recent comments suggesting that problems stemming from migration are clearly visible on the country’s streets, a statement that has sparked almost daily protests in major cities.
Some 63% of respondents in a survey commissioned by public broadcaster ZDF said they agreed with the chancellor’s statements, while 29% said they disagreed.
However, only 18% of respondents said refugees cause issues in their neighbourhood, with some 74% stating that they have not noted any significant problems or none at all.
Last week, Merz said his government is correcting past failures in migration policy and making progress.
“But we still have this problem in how our cities look, of course, and that’s why the federal interior minister is facilitating and carrying out large-scale deportations,” he added.
The statement has been widely criticized as racist, suggesting urban populations – which are more diverse than rural areas in Germany – should be targets for deportation.
Politicians inside and outside Merz’s coalition have since attacked the conservative chancellor over the comments.
Some have accused him of parroting the rhetoric of the anti-migration Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, which is roughly level with Merz’s conservatives in national polls.
Merz has rejected the criticism, telling a journalist on Monday that he would not take back his comments on urban migration. “Ask your daughters what I might have meant by that. I suspect you’ll get a pretty clear and unequivocal answer,” he said.
The statement prompted further indignation, with protests held in Berlin and over 140,000 people signing an online petition condemning them.
Older people were more likely to back Merz over his statements on immigration, according to the ZDF survey published on Friday.
While 42% of respondents in the 18-to-34 age group said they agree with his remarks, it was 70% of those aged between 35 and 59. Among those 60 and older, 66% said they agreed with the chancellor.
Two thirds of respondents said they felt safe in public spaces, including 20% who said they felt very safe.
Some 25% said they felt rather unsafe, while 8% reported feeling very unsafe in public spaces.
The results showed only slight deviations between men and women.
For the representative survey, conducted by pollsters Forschungsgruppe Wahlen on Thursday on behalf of ZDF, a total of 1,038 citizens eligible to vote were questioned via phone and online.
By Stefan Heinemeyer
