AfD calls for negative immigration

The pledge is part of the party’s draft election manifesto released on Thursday.

Called “negative immigration” [Minuszuwanderung], the AfD says such a measure would be necessary for several years, but it did not specify whether migrants would be leaving voluntarily, or by deportation.

The party has called for the closure of the nation’s borders, restriction of Islamic practices and pushing back against the “oligarchy” in its election programme.

It proposed the “end of the euro experiment” and return to sovereign national governments. According to the manifesto, the AfD believes: “The expatriation of criminal migrants should be possible: firstly, in cases of serious criminality within ten years of naturalisation.

“Secondly, for migrants in terrorist organisations (for example, ISIS); thirdly for those who belonging to criminal clans, even if the deportees thereby become stateless.”

The measures would only apply to first generation migrants who had received German citizenship.

Founded in 2013, the Eurosceptic is currently poling at around 11 per cent, but the AfD is expected to do well in the coming election later this year.

Hundreds of thousands of supporters of Angela Merkel’s CDU conservatives have deserted her party over the refugee crisis and are expected to vote heavily for the anti-immigrant, anti-EU AfD in September’s election, with the party hoping to have MPs seated in the national legislature for the first time.

The party maintains that Germany is “losing its cultural identity because of a flawed notion of tolerance” and that they “want to pass on to coming generations a country that is still recognisable as our Germany”. And despite the 4,5 million Muslims living in the country, the AfD has stated that “Islam is not part of being German”.

AfD co-leader Joerg Meuthen told Reuters. “I think we’re on top there – especially due to this program.” The AfD is projected to emerge from the election as the third biggest party.