Germany is increasingly turning xenophobic. One in three Germans believe that the country has too many foreigners, and over one in ten want a Führer at the helm of affairs, a survey released by a left-wing Berlin think-tank said Wednesday.
The Friedrich Ebert Foundation, affiliated to the Social Democratic Party (SPD), published the study titled Die Mitte in der Krise - Rechtsextreme Einstellungen in Deutschland 2010, or “The mainstream in the crisis – Right-wing extremist attitudes in Germany,” in response to a “significant rise in anti-democratic and racist sentiment.” The FES study surveyed 2,400 randomly chosen persons from 14 to 90 years of age, The Local reported.
Those who want a Führer – the survey deliberately used the German word for "leader" that is associated with Adolf Hitler – said that this person should “govern with a hard hand for the good of Germany” and believed a dictatorship to be a “better form of government.”One in every four said they longed for a “strong party” that “embodies German society.”
About 30 percent believed that “foreigners come to abuse the welfare state.” A few more (31.7 percent ) though that in a limited job market “one should send foreigners back home,” and that too many immigrants put Germany in danger of being “overrun” (35.6 percent).
Around 58 percent agreed that “religious practice for Muslims in Germany should be seriously limited.” Older and less-educated Germans were found to be most intolerant.
Germany is currently in the midst of a heated debate over the integration of people of foreign origin, especially those who follow Islam, into mainstream society.
Chancellor Angela Merkel recently set the tone for debate when she said that Islamic law had no place in German courts. Close on the heels came a contradicting statement from German President Christian Wulff insisting that "Islam also belongs in Germany."
Last week, a key ally of Chancellor Angela Merkel, Bavarian conservative leader Horst Seehofer, asserted that Germany should not accept any more immigration from alien cultures such as Turkey and Arab countries.
Clearly xenophobia is on the rise in Germany. A similar survey, a Der Speigel report said, carried out two years ago had showed a slight decrease in anti-democratic tendencies, exaggerated nationalism and xenophobia. That was during there was sustained economic growth; this survey was carried out in the backdrop of an economic crisis.
