The German
president has called for more compassion toward migrants in view of Germany's
own experiences with forced migration after WWII. He said providing them with
sanctuary was 'non-negotiable.'
Deutsche Welle, 20 June 2015
Refugees on board a ship REUTERS/Antonio Parrinello |
Speaking on
Saturday at a ceremony in Berlin to remember victims of displacement, Gauck
said he hoped that the memory of German expellees who were forced to flee the
country's former eastern territories during and after World War II would deepen
understanding for migrants today.
He
described how 12 to 14 million Germans lost their homelands by the end of the
war, leading to a population increase of 20 percent in the former West and East
Germanies.
Gauck pointed
out that if Germany had been able to integrate millions of refugees 70 years
ago when it was "poor and devastated," it should be able to do more
in the present refugee crisis, and even benefit from it.
"Why
should a Germany that is economically successful and politically stable not be
able to recognize future opportunities in today's challenges?" he asked.
"Let
us remember what a great part refugees and forced migrants played in
successfully rebuilding Germany," he added.
More
European help
He also called
on European Union countries to do more to help cope with the current growing
wave of refugees coming to Europe.
In view of
the huge number of migrants who have died attempting the perilous boat crossing from Africa to Europe over the Mediterranean, Gauck said it was a "moral
duty" to save people from drowning.
"We
would lose our self-respect if we left people drifting on waters near our
continent to cope for themselves," he said, adding that all European
states had an obligation to provide people with a safe refuge.
This
obligation was "non-negotiable," and lasted until migrants either
could return home without danger or had found a place to live in safety either
in Germany or elsewhere, he said.
'No easy
solutions'
German
Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere also spoke at the ceremony, warning that
there were no "easy solutions" to the current migration crisis.
Last year,
the German government declared the 20 June to be a day of remembrance for
refugees and displaced people, in conjunction with the United Nations' World
Refugee Day.
The German
day is partly to commemorate the millions of Germans who were forced to flee
their homes in several eastern European countries as a result of World War II
and seek refuge in Germany and Austria, greatly swelling the populations there.
tj/sgb (AFP, dpa, KNA, epd)
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