Experts consider the Dublin Agreement to be the reason for the sharp decline in the number of asylum seekers in Germany
The document, the draft of which has already been developed by the European Commission, is intended to cover people who have no prospects in their home countries and have suffered as a result of military conflicts. It is assumed that each year different regions or specific groups of refugees will be selected, as is partially done in the American 'green card' lottery.
According to the Swedish side, this program, which does not yet have an official name, should be voluntary but at the same time financially beneficial for the participating countries. For each immigrant, the European Refugee Fund will pay the country €4,000.
Official Berlin reacted rather coolly to Stockholm's initiative. Germany has so far not actively participated in such pan-European EU programs and has not declared an 'immigration amnesty' following the example of some countries. At the same time, German Interior Minister Wolfgang Schäuble reminded his European colleagues of the 'long German tradition' of accepting refugees on a humanitarian basis.
True, the minister forgot to mention that German legislation on this issue is one of the strictest in Europe. This is also evidenced by the latest data from the Federal Statistical Office, indicating a steady decline in the number of asylum seekers in Germany.
Thus, for the first time in the last 15 years, the German state's expenses for receiving and supporting refugees amounted to less than €1 billion per year. In 2008, €842 million were allocated for these purposes, which is 19% less than the previous year. Material assistance was provided to 128,000 foreigners. Of the total amount, almost 72% of the funds were spent on food and basic necessities. The remaining money mainly went to medical services. Thus, according to statistics, every resident of the Federal Republic had to pay ten euros per refugee in 2008. Experts recall that in 1996 the number of refugees was 490,000!
It is believed that the reason for the sharp decline in the number of asylum seekers in Germany is the so-called Dublin Agreement, which is criticized by human rights activists. According to this document, a petition for legalization of an illegal immigrant in the EU can only be filed in the country through which the refugee enters the European Union. This means that, for example, a refugee who arrived from Africa in Spain or Malta, even if he later reaches Germany, will be immediately extradited back, that is, to the 'first country.'
As a result, a situation is emerging today where in such 'border' EU states as Malta, the number of refugees, calculated per capita, is 10 times higher than in the EU, and 20 times higher than in Germany.