Foto: Tobias Koch
Germans unhappy about EU’s lack of transparency, direction
More than 60 percent of Germans do not believe the European Union is on track, a poll revealed Tuesday and almost all think the bloc is too aloof.
Published: November 30, 2016, 6:44 am
About 96 per cent of Germans want Brussels to be become “more transparent and closer to the people”, an independent polling institute found.
Half of all Germans want to hold a referendum on their nations EU membership – with a survey suggesting almost two-thirds of Germans are unhappy and want a new direction for the unelected bloc.
Germans believe the other member states have abandoned them to deal with the immigration problem by itself.
The results will come as a blow to Angela Merkel, who has been widely criticised for her open-door immigration policy which saw millions of migrants flooding Germany in 2015.
It appears that the German Chancellor is well aware of the negative sentiment because last week she hurriedly announced plans to deport 100 000 migrants who arrived in Germany last year.
Merkel needs to recover some of her floundering support in the polls after announcing her bid to run for her fourth term, making her the longest serving post-war leader on the continent.
Most respondents, however would not discard the idea of a united Europe, with 78 percent believing that a joint European foreign policy was an important means of representing German interests internationally due to the migrant crisis.
Almost half of all respondents believe the refugee crisis is the biggest problem the country faces and a resolution can only be found with the cooperation of the other 27 member states.
Nearly half of the respondents thought that the membership in the EU presents the equal amount of advantages and disadvantages for their country.
The survey found 67 per cent want the bureaucratic superstate to change its political direction while only 39 per cent of Germans believe EU membership is exclusively positive.
The poll conducted by TNS Infratest Politikforschung in October 2016, asked 1 001 German-speaking people over 18 years old to participate, with some 62 percent believing the European Union is not on the right track.
The Korber-Stiftung foundation, which commissioned the poll, said in a press release that 39 percent of the Germans saw the country’s EU membership as mainly advantageous, while 48 percent thought being part of the EU gave Germany both advantages and disadvantages.
The poll also found that 59 percent of the respondents had a great trust in German’s role in the bloc and felt German leadership ought to be expanded. According to 60 percent of the survey participants, at the time of the crisis, the German government has to put its interests ahead of those of the other EU members.
A great number of the poll participants did not mind close cooperation with the most important EU partners, with 80 percent singling out France, 71 percent each Italy and the Netherlands, and 67 percent Poland.
Only one third of Germans who responded to the polling have faith in the refugee resettlement deal with Turkey.
As part of a deal with Turkey, migrants and refugees who arrive on Greek shores after March 20 are to be transported to five Aegean islands and shipped back if their asylum applications are rejected.
Ankara has been promised billions of euros as part of a agreement to stem the migrant tide.
While 55 percent of Germans still say they would not be against another Angela Merkel term, according to an Emnid poll published on Sunday, her announcement to run again for office has been met with very little enthusiasm.
The anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, says the political elite is divorced from the needs of the people.
“Under Merkel, democracy in Germany has withered and mutated into an all-party coalition,” said Alexander Gauland, deputy leader of the party which is now polling at well over 12 percent.
Even her usual supporters are perplexed.”Did anyone understand why Angela Merkel wants to run again and what she wants to do in the next four years in office? I didn’t,” wrote Der Spiegel’s commentator Dirk Kurbjuweit.
The conservative Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung said that Merkel is still her party’s strongest candidate, even if she is “past her zenith at home and abroad”. But it also sadly implies that there is no talent available for her to groom a successor.
All rights reserved. You have permission to quote freely from the articles provided that the source (www.freewestmedia.com) is given. Photos may not be used without our consent.
Consider donating to support our work
Help us to produce more articles like this. FreeWestMedia is depending on donations from our readers to keep going. With your help, we expose the mainstream fake news agenda.
Keep your language polite. Readers from many different countries visit and contribute to Free West Media and we must therefore obey the rules in, for example, Germany. Illegal content will be deleted.
If you have been approved to post comments without preview from FWM, you are responsible for violations of any law. This means that FWM may be forced to cooperate with authorities in a possible crime investigation.
If your comments are subject to preview by FWM, please be patient. We continually review comments but depending on the time of day it can take up to several hours before your comment is reviewed.
We reserve the right to delete comments that are offensive, contain slander or foul language, or are irrelevant to the discussion.
Europe
New App Helps Locate Sweden’s Historic Runestones
A new app called Swedish Runestones will help locate historical gems.
Swedish military wants to remilitarize the Åland Islands
The demilitarized autonomy has previously been known as 'the islands of peace.
NOAA Predicts Zero Sunspots for Almost the Whole 2030s
CLIMATEThe United States' government scientific organization, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), predicts zero sunspots from 2031 to 2040. This is an extreme situation that has not occurred in as long as humanity has been counting sunspots, and it leads us into uncharted territory in terms of our solar system. However, this prediction aligns with the warnings of the world-renowned solar researcher Valentina Zharkova for many years, who indicated in 2019 various signs of this catastrophic phenomenon, including the extreme hailstorms we have seen in Europe and the world this summer. The forecast and various observations this year give cause for very significant concern. In this unique analysis, Free West Media explains why.
European Nationalist Parties Forge Cooperation Ahead of EU Elections
EUROPEAN ELECTIONSOn Saturday, August 26, representatives of six European nationalist parties gathered in Budapest. The meeting was initiated by the Hungarian party Mi Hazánk and took place in the national parliament. Representatives of the parties signed a joint declaration that not only reaffirms the parties' friendship but also their unity on a range of complex political issues. A surprisingly clear and radical manifesto was established. The hope is that this cooperation will lead to success in the EU elections and eventually result in the formation of a group in the European Parliament. For Swedish nationalism, this meeting marks a success as Sweden, for the first time, has a party represented in a leading nationalist cooperation in Europe. Free West Media was present at this historic event.
Turkey Believes Sweden Hasn’t Done Enough
Sweden will have to wait a bit longer for NATO membership, according to Turkey's Justice Minister Jilmaz Tunc. First, Sweden must extradite the "terrorists" Turkey wants and stop the desecration of the Quran.
Swedish Weapon Takes Down Russia’s Best Attack Helicopter
The Russian attack helicopter Ka-52 is considered one of the world's best and has struck fear in Ukraine, where it has hunted down tanks and other armored vehicles, often beyond the range of many light anti-aircraft systems. However, it has met its match in the Swedish air defense missile system RBS 70, which has quickly led to significant losses for the Russian helicopter forces.
The Sun Drives Earth’s Climate, Not Carbon Dioxide
Top Researchers Push Back Against Climate Lies."The correlation is as clear as day," explained the Israeli astrophysicist Nir Shaviv, who was hailed by the establishment, before his interview with Forbes was hastily deleted. What he says contradicts the climate narrative, which points to humans as responsible for Earth's climate. Shaviv firmly asserts that it is the sun that controls the climate, something that can be scientifically proven in many ways. Contrary to the popular belief, the sun's influence on Earth has, in recent years, caused unusually cold and rainy weather, a trend that solar researchers warn will worsen significantly in the coming decades. The sun has exhibited an unusually low activity since 2016, during Solar Cycle 24, which was the weakest in a century.
Strong Confidence in German AfD
Alternative for Germany (AfD) held a party conference on July 29-30 to select candidates for the upcoming EU election next year. EU Parliament member Maximilian Krah, belonging to the party's more radical, ethnonationalist faction, was appointed as the top candidate. The party's two spokespersons delivered powerful speeches criticizing the EU's failed migration policy and trade sanctions that isolate Europe and Germany from the rest of the world. They argued that it's time for the EU to return a significant portion of its power to national parliaments. However, they have dropped the demand for Germany to exit the EU.
The Establishment Wants to Ban Germany’s Second Largest Party – for the Sake of Democracy
The rising popularity of AfD has raised strong concerns within the establishment. Despite lies and demonization in the media and isolation from the overall political establishment, the party continues to grow. Certain representatives of the party are accused of becoming increasingly "extreme," and in an unusual move, the influential weekly newspaper Der Spiegel demanded that AfD be "banned."
Dutch FvD break through the media blockade
What is happening in the Netherlands? It is often difficult to follow events in other countries, especially when distorted by system media. We give Forum for Democracy (FvD) the opportunity to speak out on the political situation in the Netherlands and the staunch resistance they face in trying to save the country.
No comments.
By submitting a comment you grant Free West Media a perpetual license to reproduce your words and name/web site in attribution. Inappropriate and irrelevant comments will be removed at an admin’s discretion. Your email is used for verification purposes only, it will never be shared.