Impact of Globalization on Germany

Introduction

Germany went through many ups and downs in its economic, political, social and international status. The impact of globalization was strong on the German’s after the fall of Berlin wall and the unification of east and west Germany, tearing down the Soviet Empire. After this, never have so many new workers and consumers entered the global economy as quickly and suddenly. Trade in products has been supplemented by trade in tasks. Companies have supplemented trade with investment and moved from geographically concentrated production networks to geographically dispersed networks. (Daniel and Joseph, 2008)

A variety of forces – rapid technological diffusion, greater trade opportunities, lower barriers to investment, policy reforms at home -have generated greater flows of goods and services, people, capital and ideas within Europe and Germany and between Germany and the rest of the world. On the whole, these forces have fostered large gains for Germany: robust growth in exports and imports; strong outflows and inflows of investment; greater technological diffusion; net portfolio inflows; net inflows of labor; more jobs, higher  incomes, modest increases in wages; and higher GDP growth. Some effects are crosscutting: lower priced imports push inflation downward while rising food and fuel costs push inflation upward. On balance, most Germans are living better today than they were when the Iron Curtain fell and the Cold War ended, in part because of globalization.(ibid)

Challenges of globalization

To begin with, globalization is the continuation of the trend of growing openness and integration among economies that have brought the world a half century of unparalleled prosperity. That openness is now being extended to capital markets. The resulting flow of private capital to developing markets has not only helped finance increased production in recipient countries; it has also helped sustain demand for industrial country exports. For example, during 1990 to 1995, German exports to developing countries increased by close to 10 percent per year on average in U.S. dollar terms, while German exports to industrial countries increased by only 3 percent annually over the same period. As a result, by 1995, exports to developing countries represented 25 percent of total German exports, compared to just 19 percent at the beginning of the decade(1).

But with these increased opportunities also come additional risks. The first is financial instability followed by marginalization.  Countries that are unable to participate in the expansion of world trade or attract significant amounts of private investment run the risk of being left behind by the global economy. And the countries at greatest risk of being marginalized are precisely those most in need of the trade, investment and growth that globalization could bring.

Secondly, the risks appear to be outside the economic sphere. The preservation of one’s culture, tradition, its values , and a unique identity of itself arrests the attention. Because the globalization welcomes all the other heterogeneous culture, most of the germans are afraid of losing the nationalism to other alien concepts such as Islamization of Germany.

Future of Germany

Germany has been one of the globalization’s greatest beneficiaries and stands primed to benefit even more. German consumers, workers, and companies have all prospered from globalization. On one hand, Germany has been the world’s no.1 exporter of goods for five straight years. It is the world’s third largest exporter of services. Germany’s goods exports have doubled and its commercial services exports have chalked up about 14% annual growth during this decade -ahead of global trends. On the other hand, German’s workforce is exacerbating skill shortages and exposing mismatches between available jobs and relevant skills. Globalization is not responsible for these demographic pressures, but it exposes the demographic challenges starkly. Immigration is essential to Germany’s future prosperity, and Germany remains a top destination for migrants. But Germany is a magnet for the unskilled and recent efforts to facilitate the inflow of skilled migrants have yet to demonstrate success. Domestic reforms and new approaches are urgently needed.

References

Camdessus Michel, Jan 10, 1997 “Globalization and its Challenges for Germany, Europe, and the IMF” International Monetary Fund, Available  at https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2015/09/28/04/53/spmds9701, Retrieved on 12/2/2016

Daniel S. Hamilton and Joseph P. Quinlan, 2008 “Globalization and Europe: Prospering in the New Whirled Order” Germany and Globalization, Center for Transatlantic Relations
Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies Johns Hopkins University, Pg no. 2 Retrieved on 12/2/2016

 

Human rights in Germany

Introduction

Human rights are rights inherent to all human beings, whatever our nationality, place of residence, sex, national or ethnic origin, color, religion, language, or any other status. We are all equally entitled to our human rights without discrimination. These rights are all interrelated, interdependent and indivisible. Universal human rights are often expressed and guaranteed by law, in the forms of treaties, customary international law , general principles and other sources of international law. International human rights law lays down obligations of Governments to act in certain ways or to refrain from certain acts, in order to promote and protect human rights and fundamental freedoms of individuals or groups(2).

The German constitution which also is called as the Grundgesetz, which came into effect on May 8, 1949, puts a particular emphasis on human rights. The constitution contains the most important legal and political rules for the Federal Republic of Germany. For instance, the constitution states that Germany is a democratic state. That means that everyone has the right to participate in politics, for example in associations, initiatives, unions or parties. The political parties have various agendas and goals. The main parties are the CDU (Christian Democratic Union), SPD (German Social Democratic Party), Bündnis 90/The Green Party, FDP (Free Democratic Party) and the Left Party(1).

The constitution of Germany, the Grundgesetz’s first sentence, “Human dignity is inviolable”, is being interpreted as protecting the sum of human rights. This paragraph is protected by an “eternity clause” and cannot be changed. It has wide-ranging effects on judicial practice; for example, it has been used to justify the right on Informational self-determination in a 1983 finding of the Federal Constitutional Court of Germany.

Foreign and Human rights policy

Germany’s human rights policy is anchored in the constitution, the Basic Law, and aims to fulfill a specific obligation: to prevent human rights abuses and protect fundamental freedoms. A number of institutions are dedicated to protecting human rights at the national, European and global level. As a state party to many agreements, Germany is very engaged at the international level and makes an active effort to involve civil society(3).

Article 1 of the Basic Law states “(1) Human dignity shall be inviolable. To respect and protect it shall be the duty of all state authority. (2) The German people, therefore, acknowledge inviolable and inalienable human rights as the basis of every community, of peace and of justice in the world.” Germany is a signatory to virtually all United Nations human rights agreements and is committed to all key European human rights standards(4).

Human rights are indivisible. Everyone has these rights, irrespective of their background, age, gender, religion, color or any other attribute. Advancing universal respect for human rights requires attention to the whole spectrum of civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights. Human rights abuses are not just cruel. They also threaten international stability and security and within countries, they undermine economic and social progress. Protecting and advancing the whole spectrum of human rights, on the other hand, promotes peace and development and helps people develop their potential(3).

Germany most recently signed the Additional Protocol to the Convention against Torture, the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities as well as the individual complaint mechanism of the Convention on the Rights of the Child(3).

Germany has identified economic and social human rights as priorities for its new term. Economic and social human rights must be given just as much attention as political and civil rights, Foreign Minister Westerwelle emphasized. “Only people who do not live in fear of hunger, thirst or illness can enjoy true freedom and take responsibility for their lives,” he explained. Germany will also focus on ensuring better protection for children all over the world. As a member of the UN Security Council in 2011 and 2012, Germany had campaigned actively as chair of the Working Group on Children and Armed Conflict for the rights of children in situations of armed conflict. It plans to build on this work also during its Human Rights Council term. The Human Rights Council is the successor to the Commission on Human Rights. It was established in response to recommendations by then UN Secretary‑General Kofi Annan designed to reform and strengthen UN protection for human rights. The Human Rights Council has the same status as the UN General Assembly committees and reports directly to the General Assembly. The Council’s headquarters is in Geneva(5).

References

Federal Foreign Office, Dec 3, 2016 “Human rights policy” Available at http://www.auswaertiges-amt.de/sid_2D414FFF248550C9485E0B927B4E557C/EN/Aussenpolitik/Menschenrechte/Menschenrechtspolitik_node.html Retrieved on 11/18/2016

German Embassy Harare, Oct 26, 2016 “Germany’s Human Right Policy: Principles” Available at http://www.harare.diplo.de/Vertretung/harare/en/03-foreign-policy/03-human-rights/1-principles.html Retrieved on 11/18/2016

German Mission in the United States, Nov 16, 2016 “Germany Serving on UN Human Rights Council” Available at http://www.germany.info/Vertretung/usa/en/06__Foreign__Policy__State/02__Foreign__Policy/04/HumanRightsCouncil.html Retrieved on 11/18/2016

Mein Weg Nach, “Civil rights and Public Lifes” Available at http://www.goethe.de/lrn/prj/wnd/idl/grl/enindex.htm Retrieved at 11/17/2016

United Nation, Nov 16,2016 “What are Human Rights” United Nation Human Rights Office Of the High Commissioner Available at http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Pages/WhatareHumanRights.aspx Retrieved on 11/17/2016

Germany and its issues with air pollution

Introduction

With a population of 80,716,000 (2014 estimate), Germany is the 16^th most populated country in the world and the most populous state of the European Union. Germany has a diverse range of ecosystems: coastlines along the Baltic and North seas, fertile plains, highlands, forests, and the mountainous Alps in the southern part of the country. Despite being surrounded by an array of breathtaking ecosystems and scenery, Germans tend to live in urban areas, with around 86 percent of the population living in cities. Germany’s climate can be described as a temperate seasonal climate and it is dominated by humid westerly winds. The Northern extension of the Gulf Stream, the North Atlantic Drift, moderates Germany’s climate and as a result, the north and northwest coastal regions have an oceanic climate(1).

Around 2011, German environmental authorities detected a higher level of air pollution than in previous years. Air lets our living planet breathe—it’s the mixture of gasses that fills the atmosphere, giving life to the plants and animals that make Earth such a vibrant place. Broadly speaking, air is almost entirely made up of two gasses (78 percent nitrogen and 21 percent oxygen), with a few other gasses (such as carbon dioxide and argon) present in absolutely minute quantities. We can breathe ordinary air all day long with no ill effects, so the air pollution can be defined as: a gas (or a liquid or solid dispersed through ordinary air) released in a big enough quantity to harm the health of people or other animals, kill plants or stop them growing properly, damage or disrupt some other aspect of the environment (such as making buildings crumble), or cause some other kind of nuisance (reduced visibility, perhaps, or an unpleasant odor)(5).

In many cities, air pollution from fine dust particles and nitrogen dioxide exceeds the maximum threshold levels, according to the report from the Environment Ministry. To reduce these risks, Germany has set threshold values for certain substances. But these levels are being exceeded more and more frequently in many parts of the country(2).

Stuttgart as the German capital of air pollution

Stuttgart is the German city where the concentration of fine particulate matter in the air exceeds the legal limit on more days per year than any other German city. Stuttgart’s mayor, Fritz Kuhn – of The Greens – told German media that the alarm had not affected traffic in the city so far(3).

Fine dust particles pose another serious problem. Here, the maximum is 40 µg up to a particle size of ten micrometers per cubic meter of air. Stuttgart exceeded this limit on 91 days in 2013. After Stuttgart, Reutlingen follows in second place, followed by Markgröningen, Tübingen, Gelsenkirchen, Hagen and Leipzig.According to the research, Stuttgart often had an annual nitrogen dioxide level that was more than double the acceptable threshold value. Cities with pollution levels just below Stuttgart’s were Munich, Reutlingen, Düren, Limburg and Freiburg(2).

Mitigation approaches

To deal with the air pollution in Germany, the German authorities stressed that people should drive less on a voluntary basis to improve the air quality in their cities.

Air quality control in Germany is mainly governed by the Act on the Prevention of Harmful Effects on the Environment Caused by Air Pollution, Noise, Vibration and Similar Phenomena, short Federal Immission Control Act (BImSchG) and its implementing ordinances and administrative regulations. In addition, there are also provisions on air quality control at Länder level(4).

The German government bases air pollution control on four strategies:

• laying down the environmental quality standard
• emission reduction requirements according to the best available technology
• product regulations
• laying down emission ceilings

The German government is therefore actively involved in the constructive dialogue on air pollution control measures both at European and international level. One example for this is the cooperation with the Geneva Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution(4).

Reference

Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Saftey, 01/09/2010 “General Information Air Pollution control” Available at http://www.bmub.bund.de/en/topics/air-mobility-noise/air-pollution-control/general-information/#c20622 (Retrieved at 11/11/2016)

Osterath Brigitte, Jan 20, 2016 “Stuttgart: Germany’s ‘Beijing’ for air pollution?” Available at http://www.dw.com/en/stuttgart-germanys-beijing-for-air-pollution/a-18991064 retrieved on 11/10/2016

Sagener Nicole, Apr 28, 2015 “German cities show excessive air pollution levels” available at https://www.euractiv.com/section/sustainable-dev/news/german-cities-show-excessive-air-pollution-levels/ retrieved at 11/10/2016

Smith Brett, Jun 30, 2015 “Germany: Environmental Issues, Policies, and Clean Technology” AZo Cleantech Available at http://www.azocleantech.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=549 Retrieved at 11/10/2016

Woodford Chris,  March 7, 2016. “Air Pollution” Available at http://www.explainthatstuff.com/air-pollution-introduction.html

Undocumented migrants in Germany

Introduction

Germany is the second most popular land for immigrants after the United States. Since its unification in 1990, Germany is struggling to cope with the greatest surge of illegal immigration from most part of the world(1). According to the Federal Statistical Office of Germany in 2012, 92% of residents (73.9 million) in Germany had German citizenship, with 80% of the population being Germans (64.7 million) having no immigrant background. Of the 20% (16.3 million) people with immigrant background, 3.0 million (3.7%) had Turkish, 1.5 million (1.9%) Polish, 1.2 million (1.5%) Russian and 0.85 million (0.9%) Italian background(2).

In 2014, Germany reached its high record in numbers of illegal immigrants roaming its land. 27,000 illegal refugees were detained in Germany. Almost 30,000 were stopped in their native country or a transit state before they managed to reach German soil. “Illegal immigration, alongside the threat of international Islamist terrorism, is the biggest challenge currently facing the German police,” says the German Federal Police President Dieter Romann(1).

Asylum seekers

Half a million asylum seekers have made it into Germany without being registered in any way, according to a Bild magazine report that cites the German Interior Ministry. Over the course of the last year, an estimated 1.1 million refugees arrived in Germany. Most of the asylum seekers have come from Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and the Balkan states.The German government says nearly 5,000 child and teenage asylum seekers have gone missing from refugee homes since the start of 2016. Police believe that the figures could be distorted but have not ruled out that some might have been the victims of crime(3).

Germany in need of Immigrant Law

The gap between rhetoric and reality is wider on the issue of illegal immigration than it is on almost any other in Germany today. Through policies passed into law, the country has taken an official zero-tolerance policy toward illegal immigration, emphasizing the need to deport current illegal residents and illegal workers as well as criminalizing aid to such illegal persons, estimated unofficially at upwards of one million(4).

On the other hand, Germans themselves were migrants, but Germany has long become an immigration country. Many people don’t want to accept this reality; they would rather sweep it under the rug. And yet, Germany needs immigrants, because Germans are having too few children. The future generation is simply too small: For the economy, for industry, for research, for training, for skilled workers and engineers. If Germany wants to protect its prosperity, there has to be immigration – but in a targeted, controlled manner. An immigration law needs to regulate three things: The desired immigration, the asylum laws for persecuted, oppressed dissidents, writers, human rights activists and people who are part of a threatened minority. But there should also be laws on refugees to allow temporary sanctuary as long as a war or similar disaster persists(5).

Although the 2001 report of the Süssmuth Commission, an independent body charged with suggesting immigration reforms, made a move toward closing this gap between rhetoric and reality by advocating liberalization in a variety of policy areas, neither it nor the more conservative new Immigration Law, or Zuwanderungsgesetz, passed in July 2004, fully takes stock of how to balance two goals: (1) incorporating the wide range of immigrants who aim to contribute beneficially to Germany as workers and residents, and (2) stiffening enforcement measures against persons who intend to engage in crime or corruption rather than productive contributions. This failure can be attributed to relatively obvious factors, including Germany’s fairly new understanding of itself as a country of immigration and renewed fears of foreign terrorists, as well as less apparent factors, including the satisfaction of some Germans with the unfavorable position of illegal workers and residents in the status quo. To consider these factors while seeking to strike a balance between the goals of incorporation and enforcement would be a step in the right direction(4).

References

Breitenbach Dagmar, 08/04/2015 “Germany Grapples with Record Number of Illegal Refugees” Available at http://www.dw.com/en/germany-grapples-with-record-number-of-illegal-refugees/a-18367682 (accessed on 11/4/2016)

Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF), 2014 “Migrationsbericht des Bundesamtes für Migration und Flüchtlinge im Auftrag der Bundesregierung”  Available at http://www.bamf.de/SharedDocs/Anlagen/DE/Publikationen/Migrationsberichte/migrationsbericht-2012.pdf?__blob=publicationFile (accessed on 11/4/2016)

Huhn Armin, Lockwood Chip, Semanski Kathleen, Oct 30, 2016 “Breaking the Silence: An Honest Discussion About Illegal Immigration to Germany” Available at http://www.humanityinaction.org/knowledgebase/239-breaking-the-silence-an-honest-discussion-about-illegal-immigration-to-germany  (accessed on 11/4/2016)

Kudascheff Alexander, 31/05/2016 “Opinion: Germany Now Needs an Immigrants Law” Available at http://www.dw.com/en/opinion-germany-now-needs-an-immigration-law/a-19296490 (accessed on 11/4/2016)

RT News, 5 Apr, 2016 “500,000 Unregistered Migrants Roaming Germany- Report” Available at https://www.rt.com/news/338482-germany-unregistered-refugees-criminal/ (accessed on 11/4/2016)

Gender issue in Germany

Women in Germany

For centuries, a woman’s role in German society was summed up and circumscribed by the three “K” words: Kinder (children), Kirche (church), and Küche (kitchen). Sometimes the fourth “K” is mentioned: Kleider (clothes). Throughout the 20th century, however, women have gradually won victories in their quest for equal rights. In 1919 they received the right to vote. Profound changes also were made by World War II. During the war, women assumed positions traditionally held by men. After the war, the so-called Trümmerfrauen (women of the rubble) tended the wounded, buried the dead, salvaged belongings, and began the hard task of rebuilding war-torn Germany by simply clearing away the rubble(1).

The equality of men and women grew when the women group gained education facilities, in both east and west Germany. By the mid-1960s, East German women accounted for about half of all secondary school graduates who had prepared to study at institutes of higher learning in the GDR; by the 1975-76 academic year, they were in the majority (53 percent).Only in the early 1980s did West German women qualify for admission to universities in the same numbers as men. Although fewer than that number pursued college and university studies, between 1970 and 1989 the percentage of female students increased from 31 percent to 41 percent. West German women had a stronger orientation toward traditional familial relations and they had dimmer prospects for admission to particular academic departments and for professional employment after graduation(2).

Despite significant gains, discrimination remains in united Germany. Income inequalities persist: a woman’s wages and salaries range between 65 percent and 78 percent of a man’s for many positions. In most fields, women do not hold key positions. Generally, the higher the position, the more powerful is male dominance(2). For example, women are heavily represented in the traditional caregiving fields of health and education, but even in such fields there is a wide disparity between the number of females working in hospitals (75 percent of total staff) and schools (more than 50 percent) and the number of female physicians (4 percent) and principals (20 percent in the west and 32 percent in the east). In the late 1980s, only 5 percent of university professors in West Germany were women(1).

Gender pay gap

Women in Germany have never been better qualified where a quarter of working aged women held a college degree or higher level qualification in 2011, according
to the Federal Statistical Office. When women between 30 to 34 years of age only were taken into consideration, that figure stood at 35 percent compared with 31 percent of men. Yet the increase in the level of female higher education does not translate
into more, better-paid jobs for women(3). Germany is marked by one of the highest and most persistent gender pay gaps in the EU attaining around 22 percent, while the EU average is 16.4 percent. In the private sector, the gap is much higher than in the public sector. Since the Equal Pay Day has been introduced in Germany in 2008 initiated by Business and Professional Women, more attention has been paid to the gender pay gap. However, up to now, binding measures able to reduce the gender pay gap or to value female work adequately do not exist(4)

Change in traditional gender roles

The reasons behind the pay gap and promotion hurdles are both complicated and manifold and include the facts that women are more likely to work in lower paid job sectors such as healthcare or retail, work part time – and that there are often fewer promotion opportunities for those not in full-time employment(3). Germany is trying to bridge the pay gap between men and women by forcing companies to be more transparent about wage structures. Angela Merkel’s centre-right Christian Democrats and their centre-left coalition allies have agreed in principle on rules under which employees at businesses with more than 200 staff will have a right to see anonymised data on the wages of men and women in comparable positions. Companies with more than 500 employees will be asked to carry out checks and publish reports on gender pay parity every five years.(5)

“This is a taboo we just can’t afford anymore; the country needs women to be able to both work and have children,” said Ursula von der Leyen, the German labor minister. A mother of seven and doctor-turned-politician, she baffles housewives and childless career women alike, not to mention many men in her Christian Democratic Union(6). The Confederation of German Trade Union’s is calling for men to “reduce their working hours at certain stages of their life,” as well employers to make it easier for women who work part-time to gradually increase their hours – a call echoed by The Nuremberg Institute for Employment Research which also maintains that high-quality childcare at a lower cost should also remain a priority(3).

According to the country’s office for statistics, women in Germany earn on average 21% less than men, often due to the fact that women are less likely to be employed in highly paid sectors and more likely to work part-time. Even when such factors are accounted for, women on average still earn 7% less than men working in comparable positions. The gender pay gap continues to be wider in the western half of the country than in the states that used to make up the communist east. In 2015 the gap stood at 8% in the former GDR and 23% in the west. Germany was ranked 11th in the World Economic Forum’s 2015 global gender gap report, behind the likes of Iceland, Norway, Finland and Sweden(5).

References

Bennhold Katrin, January 17, 2010 “In Germany, a Traditional Falls, and Women Rise” Available at http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/18/world/europe/18iht-women.html (accessed on 10/28/2016)

Coutsoukis Photius, 2004 “Germany Women in Society” Available at http://www.photius.com/countries/germany/society/germany_society_women_in_society.html (accessed on 10/28/2016)

Dr. Botsch Elisabeth, April 2015 “The Policy on Gender Equality in Germany” POLICY DEPARTMENT C:CITIZENS’ RIGHT AND CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS, pg. no. 18 Available at http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/IDAN/2015/510025/IPOL_IDA(2015)510025_EN.pdf. (accessed on 28/10/2016)

DW-AKADEMIE, 08/03/2016 “Women in Germany Await Workplace Equality” Available at http://www.dw.com/en/women-in-germany-await-workplace-equality/a-19099867 (accessed on 10/28/2016)

Gordeeva Tatyana, 2016 “German Culture: Women in German Society” Available ar http://germanculture.com.ua/germany-facts/women-in-german-society/ (accessed on 10/28/2016)

Oltermann Philip, October 7, 2016 “Germany to Require Firms to Publish Data on Gender Pay Parties” Available at https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/oct/07/germany-to-require-firms-to-publish-data-on-gender-pay-parity (accessed on 10/28/2016)

 

 

Germany and United Nation

Introduction

The relationship between Germany and United Nations started building up after the Second World War. On September 18, 1973 Germany was admitted as a full member of United Nation. It took around 30 years for Germany to be a member of United Nation, which seemed unthinkable at first.

United Nation (UN), international organization established on October 24, 1945. The United Nations (UN) was the second multipurpose international organization established in the 20th century that was worldwide in scope and membership. The name United Nations was originally used to denote the countries allied against Germany, Italy, and Japan. On January 1, 1942, 26 countries signed the Declaration by United Nations, which set forth the war aims of the Allied powers(1).

The UN has four main purposes:

1. To keep peace throughout the world.
2. To develop friendly relations among the nations.
3. To help Nations to work together to improve the lives of the poor people.
4. To be a center for harmonizing the action of nations to achieve peace.

In the case of Germany after WW2, the division of itself into  the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) and  the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) was the problem it was going through which led  the focus of the majority of the population centered on issues concerning their immediate livelihood and economic reconstruction. Thoughts about the future of German foreign policy were cast into the background, especially since it remained open whether or not Germany, after all of its crimes, could become a member of the free and peaceful world community. Indeed, during the foundation of the global community the so-called “enemy states articles” of the UN Charter (Art. 53, 77 and 107) established that the eventual measures taken against the former Axis Powers were not to be subjected to its stipulations. However, in 1995, these provisions were declared by the General Assembly to be “obsolete”(2)

According to the Hallstein Doctrine, any country (with the exception of the USSR) that recognized the authorities of the German Democratic Republic would not have diplomatic relations with West Germany. In the early 1970s, Willy Brandt’s policy of “New Ostpolitik” led to a form of mutual recognition between East and West Germany. The Treaty of Moscow (August 1970), the Treaty of Warsaw (December 1970), the Four Power Agreement on Berlin (September 1971), the Transit Agreement (May 1972), and the Basic Treaty (December 1972) helped to normalize relations between East and West Germany and led to both German states joining the United Nations.(3)

Germany’s contribution

The first contact that post-war Germany had with the United Nations remained in connection with the humanitarian work of different UN specialized agencies – including the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the UN Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA) and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). According to the former West German ambassador to the UN Alexander Graf York von Wartenburg: “Back then all we knew of the UN were aid packages and school lunches from UNICEF ”(2)

The beginnings of German UN membership came at a time in which the United Nations was first emerging as a powerful global institution. Due to the historic experience of the Second World War, the support of human rights initiatives stood at the heart of Germany’s UN policy. Building upon the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the two comprehensive human rights conventions known as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) as well as the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) were acceded to by both states after they acquired full membership in 1973.(2)

German experience with UN peace operations began after reunification in 1989 with the deployment of non-combat troops in Cambodia (UNTAC) and Namibia (UNTAG), as well as a larger contingent (up to 1,700 soldiers in August to October 1993) in Somalia (UNOSOM II). Since 1994, Germany has participated actively in combat missions as well, but its contributions have been heavily concentrated outside the purview of the UN, in missions deployed by NATO and the EU. Contributions to UN-led peacekeeping operations have consisted of a steady but small numbers of military observers, covering, for example, the entire mandate periods for UNOMIG, UNAMID (to date), UNMIS and UNMEE. Other contributions have included UNMIL, UNAMSIL and UNSCOM/UNIKOM (transport) and INTERFET (medical). A notable exception to this pattern is Berlin’s contribution to the maritime component of UNIFIL II; from a peak of 933 at the mission’s inception, this has been drawn down to 117 in September 2015.(4)

As the third largest financial contributor to the UN, the Federal Republic plays a deciding role in the UN. In 2012, Germany financed 8.018% of the UN’s regular biennial budget of $5.24 billion, which totaled approximately $190 million. With regards to the financing of international peace operations, the Federal Republic is the fourth largest financial contributor. Work in the International Criminal Court (ICC), specialized agencies and UN Program (e.g. UNEP andUNDP) is also made possible as a result of the financial contributions of Germany, as well as a number of other states. When examining the voluntary financial contributions to specialized agencies, Germany usually remains in 10th place. An exception is evident with regards to support of the UN Environment Program (UNEP), to which Germany is one of the largest contributors. Upon Germany’s 40th year anniversary, the UNA-Germany will pay especially close attention to the country’s numerous contributions to the UN as a world organization.(2)

Reference

Acidic, September 16, 2010 ” Why weren’t East and West Germany admitted to the United Nation until 1973?” Available at http://ask.metafilter.com/165253/Why-werent-East-and-West-Germany-admitted-to-the-United-Nations-until-1973 (Accessed on 10/21/16)

Ansorg Nadine, 2016 “Peacekeeping Contributor Profile: Germany” Kent University, Available at http://www.providingforpeacekeeping.org/2014/04/03/contributor-profile-germany/ (accessed on 10/21/16)

Fomernad Jacques, Lynch M. Cecelia, Mingst Karen, 11/30/2015 “UNITED NATION (UN): International Organization” Available at https://www.britannica.com/topic/United-Nations (accessed on 10/21/2016)

United Nation of Association of Germany, 2016 “40 Years of German Membership in the United Nation” Available at http://www.dgvn.de/germany-in-the-united-nations/40-years-of-german-membership-in-the-united-nations/ (accessed on 10/21/2016)

Christianity in Germany

Catholics and Protestants

The population of Germany in 1933 was around 60 million. Almost all Germans were Christian, belonging either to the Roman Catholic (20 million members) or the Protestant (40 million members) churches. The Jewish community in Germany  in 1933 was less than 1% of the total population of the country(1). Christianity is the largest religion in Germany. Many of the things that are important to Germans and that have shaped their culture have their origin in Christian thinking. (This, in turn, is shaped by a Jewish worldview, which is why Germans sometimes speak about their Judeo-Christian heritage).

In today’s time, about 60% to 70% of the populations are the followers of the Christianity religion in Germany. They are more or less evenly split between the mainstream denominations of Lutheran-Protestantism and Calvinism united in the EKD (Evangelical Church in Germany) and the Roman Catholic Church. Due to the historical development of religion in Germany, these denominations are concentrated in specific regions(2). In the course of the Protestant Reformation and the ensuing Thirty Years’ War in the 15^th and 16^th centuries, religion in Germany ended up being distributed according to the preferences of local rulers: Therefore, most areas in the South or West (especially Bavaria and Northerner-Westphalia) are Catholic while the North and East are mainly Protestant. However, the Communist regime of the former DDR (German Democratic Republic) frowned upon religion in Germany’s eastern parts until the reunification in 1990. This explains why the percentage of self-confessed atheists is particularly high in these federal states.

Other strands of Christian religion in Germany are the so-called Free Evangelical Churches, a loose union of congregations adhering to Baptism, Methodism and related faiths such as the Mennonites, as well as the two Orthodox churches. Christian evangelism in Germany goes back to U.S. American missionary efforts in the 19^th century. Both the Greek-Orthodox and the Russian-Orthodox religion in Germany became established here with the Greek and Serbian immigrant population in the 1960s and 1970s(2).

In summary, the Roman Catholicism slowly started to change its shape and reformation began. With the help of Marin Luther the new reformation of Protestantism was born. Later on Protestantism rose to be the major religion of Germany with almost two thirds of the population practicing this faith. The Thirty Year’s War, which was fought on religious grounds, culminated in the division of Germany into regions based on religion. Catholicism prevailed in the southern and western areas. The East German regions and some northern states were predominantly staunch Protestants(3).

Reformation of Protestant

It all started with the man named Martin Luther, who stood against the dominance of Roman Catholic religion. The 16th-century Protestant Reformation, launched by the German Augustinian monk Martin Luther, divided the territories of what is now Germany into a predominantly Protestant North and a predominantly Catholic South. This division endures today. (States that belonged to East Germany were predominantly Protestant, but they saw a substantial decline in religious adherence during communist rule)(4).

Martin Luther

The Protestant reformation divides Christianity into not only two but several denominations including Lutherans, Apostolic Lutherans, Reformed Lutherans, Free Lutherans and Lutherans going back to become Catholics because of the vagueness of the divisions. The Catholic Church made the people believe that, Christians were saved only through faith and the grace of god. Serving the church and paying for the rituals it preformed can help a man clear his door ways to heaven. Martin Luther strongly stood against Church’s belief saying “these rituals didn’t have the power to save a man’s soul” and voiced against Church and the Pope that they make mistakes all the time like common peoples do. Then he went on raising his voice against Church and Officers of the Church, protesting that they have on spiritual powers and people do not need priests to have the grace of God. The most revolutionary step of Luther was his translation of Bible to German Language. With this, people could read the bible, who where literate and created  war between liberal thinkers and religious extremist.

There are nearly 29 million Protestants in Germany today, accounting for about a third of the overall population, and most are members of the Evangelical Church in Germany (Evangelische Kirche in Deutschland). Roman Catholics account for a third of the German population, totaling about 28 million. Germany also is home to more than a million Orthodox Christians and more than 500,000 other Christians. According to historical estimates, roughly 60% of Germans were Protestant before World War II, and about one-third professed Roman Catholicism. This suggests that the Protestant proportion of the population has declined significantly, whereas the Catholic proportion has remained roughly the same(4).

The video below explains the reformation process in detail.

 

However, long stint of Communism has had its effect resulting in a generally atheistic attitude where religion is concerned. In Saxony-Anhalt, the birth place of Martin Luther, only about 19% of the population hold some kind of religious beliefs.The Jewish population was exterminated to a large degree by the world war genocide. In spite of that Germany now has about 100,000 Jews, making it a growing German religion. There are about 3 million Muslims from various countries, notably Turkey, living in Germany. A rising Hindu population has made its presence felt in most major cities of Germany. Europe’s second largest Hindu temple is to be found in(3).

Reference

• Holocaust Encyclopedia, July 2, 2016 “THE GERMANY CHURCHES AND THE NAZI STATE” Available at https://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005206 (accessed on 10/14/2016)
• InterNation.world wide, 2016 “Religion in Germany” Available at https://www.internations.org/germany-expats/guide/16030-culture-shopping-recreation/religion-in-germany-16010 (accessed on 10/14/2016)
• MyGermanCity.com, 2007 “German Religion is Mainly Christianity” Available at http://www.mygermancity.com/german-religion (Accessed on 10/14/2016)
• Pew Research Center, Dec 19, 2011 “Regional Distribution of Christians” Available at http://www.pewforum.org/2011/12/19/global-christianity-regions/ (accessed on 10/14/2016)

Germany bans WhatsApp’s new privacy terms

Facebook and WhatsApp

WhatsApp is by far Facebook’s largest acquisition, over 20 times larger than Facebook’s Instagram acquisition. Over 500 million people uses WhatsApp monthly and the service currently adds more than 1 million user per day. Seven percent of WhatsApp users are active daily,
compared to Facebook’s 62%. Additionally, WhatsApp user sends 500 million pictures back and forth per day, about 150 more than Facebook users. These reasons explain why Facebook made a huge investment to buying WhatsApp(1).

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerburg paid 19 billion for messaging service “WhatsApp”. According to Mark “Our mission is to make the world more open and connected. We do this by building services that help people share any type of content with any group of people they want. WhatsApp will help us do this by continuing to develop a service that people around the world love to use every day”(2). WhatsApp plays a significant role in the global areas crucial to Facebook growth. Facebook is focusing on the future of international, cross-platform communications and it believes that it will immensely make profit from WhatsApp down the line as phone calls become obsolete and mobile messages reign(1).

Issue of Cyber Security

After the two companies, Facebook and WhatsApp joined forces to make the communication world more better and easier to use, WhatsApp announced that, it would start handing over data about its users to Facebook. Facebook would then use that data to help its ads, generating more information about the people using it. This act raised question on the WhatsApp’s loyalty of keeping data private and not using its platform for ads(3). Regarding the Cyber security and privacy, the city of Hamburg’s data protection commissioner ordered Facebook to stop collecting and storing data on WhatsApp users in Germany, the first time a privacy watchdog has waded into the debate. The regulator also called on the social network to delete all information already forwarded from WhatsApp on roughly 35 million German users(4).

The European Court of Justice recently suggested that international companies must comply with national data protection laws if they process data in those countries. Data can only be shared if both companies establish a legal basis to do so. But Facebook doesn’t have any approval from WhatsApp users and the legal basis for the data sharing doesn’t exist.Facebook markets its German-speaking business through a subsidiary in Hamburg, meaning that the city’s data protection watchdog can hand down orders to Facebook – though it remains to be seen whether it will actually comply with it (3).

The Hamburg commissioner for data protection and freedom of information, in a statement. “It has to be their decision, whether they want to connect their account with Facebook. Therefore, Facebook has to ask for their permission in advance. This has not happened.”(3)

In a response, Facebook said it was ready to cooperate with the German authorities. “Facebook complies with EU data protection law. We are open to working with the Hamburg DPA in an effort to address their questions and resolve any concerns,” a spokeswoman for the company told the news agency AFP (Agence France-Presse). WhatsApp’s announcement is that, it would share information with Facebook came just four months after the service introduced end-to-end encryption by default, saying that the content of messages would become unreadable for anyone except the sender and receiver(5).

Facebook promised that WhatsApp wouldn’t change. It would remain an independent entity without an advertising-based business model. But apparently, these promises are not enough for German users.As a reminder, Angela Merkel’s phone has been tapped for years by the U.S. intelligence agencies. It’s a very pragmatic example of a privacy breach. It probably resonated with Germans(6). Europe has resisted American technology giants’ use of people’s digital information, routinely forcing companies like Google and Facebook to change their policies after they breached the European Union’s tough data protection rules(5).

Now, WhatsApp will have to make sure that its users still feel safe sending WhatsApp messages. It will have to prove that privacy is still one of the company’s top priorities, Facebook or not(6).

 

References

Deutsch L. Alison, March 25, 2015 “WhatsApp: The Best Facebook Purchase Ever?” Investopedia, LLC. Available at http://www.investopedia.com/articles/investing/032515/whatsapp-best-facebook-purchase-ever.asp (accessed on 10/6/2016)

Dillet Romain, February 21, 2014 “Bye Bye WhatsApp: Germans Switch to Threema for Privacy Reasons” TechChurch, Available at https://techcrunch.com/2014/02/21/bye-bye-whatsapp-germans-switch-to-threema-for-privacy-reasons/ (accessed on 10/7/2016)

DW Akademie, September 27, 2016 ” German Bans WhatsApp Data Transfer to Facebook” Available at http://www.dw.com/en/germany-bans-whatsapp-data-transfer-to-facebook/a-35903021 (accessed on 10/7/2016)

Griffin Andrew, September 27, 2016 “WhatsApp banned from sharing data with Facebook in Germany”, Available at http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/whatsapp-facebook-data-sharing-update-ads-germany-hamburg-banned-a7332606.html (accessed on 10/7/2016)

Scott Mark, September 17, 2016 “Facebook Ordered to Stop Collecting Data on WhatsApp Users in Germany” The New York Times, Available at http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/28/technology/whatsapp-facebook-germany.html?_r=0 (accessed on 10/7/2016)

The Telegram, October 7, 2016 ” Facebook buys WhatsApp: Mark Zuckerburg Explains Why” Available at http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/mediatechnologyandtelecoms/digital-media/10650340/Facebook-buys-WhatsApp-Mark-Zuckerberg-explains-why.html (Accessed on 10/07/2016)

Germany’s Dependency on Natural Gas

Introduction

Since January 1 1995, Germany has been a part of the World Trade Organization, existing both as an individual nation and as part of the EU (known officially as the European Communities in the WTO until 30 November 2009)(1). Although Germany is one of the top importers and exporters of goods and material in the world, it is heavily dependent on imports of fossil fuel.

Germany needs to import nearly 90% of gas it consumes. In 2013 the country produced 9.7 billion cubic meters natural gas, but according to geologists, the fields are nearing depletion. Gas contributes about 22.9% to Germany’s primary energy uses. In 2013, most of it was used in household purpose, mostly for heating as well as cooking, followed by industrial consumption and combined heat and power (CHP) production. Thus, only fraction amount of gas is used to produce electrical power(2).

Dependent on Natural Gas

Russia, being a major source of energy supplier, provides 38 percent of Germany’s natural gas imports, 35 percent of all oil imports and 25 percent of coal imports, covering a quarter of the country’s entire energy needs(3). Countries like Norway and Netherlands also contributes as suppliers of gas for Germany but relationship between these countries is based of short termed shipments. Both countries could increase their short-term shipments via pipelines, but not in the long run, because experts believe North Sea gas reserves are slowly being used up(3).

 

Germany is more dependent in Russian Natural Gas because it could not find any other alternative to satisfy the need of billion cubic meters of gas consumption per year. Another reason in the country having no alternative to gas imports is that, the German government decided to stop coal production in 2018. Germany also imports coal for its energy purpose, and 25 percent of these imports are from Russia. Germany’s dependence on Russian energy is due to not only imports, but also the relations between energy companies. For example, Russian state-owned energy giant Gazprom and Germany’s Wintershall, a subsidiary of chemicals firm BASF (Badische Anilin und Soda Fabrik, or, in English, Baden Aniline and Soda Factory) , agreed on a significant exchange of shares. This gave gas storage and extra trading capacity to Gazprom and in return Wintershal received shares in Siberian gas fields(3).

Seeing that Russia having an upper hand, Germany finds itself in a vulnerable situation to any supply disruptions that prevents Russian gas from flowing across its border. If for any reason Russia cuts off the flow of its supply, Germany has very few options but none of those options seems aidful(4).

The options for Germany includes imports of natural gases for Norway and Netherlands, which are its biggest gas suppliers along with Russia. But as mentioned above, in the long run, the supplies for these countries will not be enough to supplement the Russian imports because it is believed that the gas produced in the Northern Sea is to be in secular decline(4).

Another option is to import LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) from the major gas producing countries like Qatar. But that possibility faces some major hurdles. Firstly, US LNG exports won’t take off in earnest for at least another few years, and even when the first export project – Cheniere Energy’s Sabine Pass facility in Louisiana – goes into service, its exports will be destined for other countries that have secured those supplies through long-term binding contracts.Even if Germany manages to ink a long-term contract with another LNG exporter, it doesn’t have the necessary infrastructure like unloading terminals and regasification plants to handle large volumes of imported LNG(4)

The option that the German’s are working on in the current situation is to drill for gas within German borders using hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, the drilling technique that helped revolutionize US hydrocarbon production. According to the country’s Federal Institute for Geo-sciences and Natural Resources, Germany contains up to 2.3 trillion cubic meters of shale gas, enough to supply domestic demand for up to a century. Despite its positive approach, that detaches Germany from Russian LNG dominance, the flip side shows a very ugly picture of fracking.

Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, as it is more commonly known, is a method to release petroleum or natural gas from rock formations by injecting a mixture of water, sand and chemicals deep underground at high pressure. Oil and gas can then be extracted; but parts of the chemical cocktail remain in the soil. That’s why environmental experts warn that fracking could pollute the groundwater(5).

Because of the huge danger of pollution, there has been multiple protest against fracking and it has just become a controversial concept. Even if Germany consumed considerably less natural gas in the long term, it would not necessarily decrease imports from Russia. That is because gas production is declining among current alternative European suppliers: Norway, the Netherlands and the UK. Thus, keeping Germany dependent on Russian(2).

 

 

 

Reference

Amelang Soren, Feb 11, 2016 “Germany’s Dependence on Imported Fossil Fuel” Clean Energy Wire, Available at https://www.cleanenergywire.org/factsheets/germanys-dependence-imported-fossil-fuels (accessed on Sep 29,2016)

Deuse Klaus, April 17, 2014 “Just How Important is Russia Gas for Europe?” Available at http://www.dw.com/en/just-how-important-is-russian-gas-for-europe/a-17574004 (accessed on September 29, 2016)

EW World Economy Team, June 9,2013 “Germany Exports, Imports & Trade” Available at http://www.economywatch.com/world_economy/germany/export-import.html (accessed on September 29, 2016)

Sreekumar Arjun, August 31, 2014 “Which Country Relies Most Heavily in Russian Gas?” The Motley Fool, Available at http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2014/08/31/which-country-depends-most-heavily-on-russian-gas/14758961/ (accessed on September 30,2016)

Tuarau Jens, 01/06/2013 “Fracking evokes ‘angst’ in Germany”  Available at http://www.dw.com/en/fracking-evokes-angst-in-germany/a-16853076 (accessed on September 30, 2016).

 

Alternative for Deutschland

Introduction

Alternative for Deutschland (AfD) is also known as Alternative for Germany. A far- right Alternative for Germany party, started as a protest movement against the euro currency, challenging the Germany’s consensus- driven politics (1). It was founded in April 2013, winning 4.7% of the vote in the 2013 federal election in Bundestag it has secured its seat in state legislation. It advocates a decentralized less bureaucratic European Union. It favors the dissolution of euro-zone and retention on the common currency only by fiscally responsible countries, such as Germany. It also calls for more direct democracy with Swiss- Style plebiscites, prohibiting gay marriage, curbs on immigration and pension guarantees (2).

The Alternative for Germany party (AfD) currently has about 23,500 members. Two AfD politicians have seats in the European Parliament in Brussels, 104 are lawmakers in eight of the 16 German state parliaments. And after the victory in the Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania polls, the AfD will have seats in yet another state parliament. Another 700 AfD members are active in municipal councils across the nation(5).

Many analysts argue Angela Merkel – in her capacity as German chancellor and head of the conservative Christian Democratic Party (CDU) – is to blame for the AfD’s emergence. As party leader, Merkel gave the CDU a more centrist makeover, leaving space at the right fringes. Merkel’s decisions as chancellor, be it the nuclear power phase-out or the discontinuation of compulsory military service, disconcerted voters who saw the pillars of their conservative view of the world shaken to the core. In particular against Merkel’s policies in the euro-zone debt crisis – even if the German economy came out relatively unscathed. In 2013, these critics and malcontents flocked to economics professor Bernd Lucke – and founded a party they named Alternative for Germany (5).

The AfD has capitalized on a nationalist backlash against Chancellor Merkel’s welcome for more than a million migrants and refugees in 2015. Anxiety about immigration dominated the Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania election on 4 September, enabling the AfD to take second place (almost 21%), behind the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD – 30.6%) but ahead of Mrs Merkel’s Christian Democrats (CDU – 19%). When the numbers of migrants arriving in Germany surged in 2014-2015 the AfD made that the focus of its party platform. There were contacts with the anti-immigration Pegida movement, which staged weekly marches against what it called “the Islamisation of the West”(6).

AFD and its Anti- Islamic manifesto

Muslims constitute five percent of the total population of Germany, which hosts some four million of them. The majority which makes up the longer established community arrived from Turkey to work decades ago, but over the past year asylum seekers have mostly been coming from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan, fleeing war and setting their sights on Germany, which has the largest economy and lowest unemployment rate in Europe (3).

Denying the reality that the population of Muslims and Islamic religion is growing in the Germany, delegates from Germany’s anti-immigration party Alternative für Deutschland(AfD) backed an election manifesto that says Islam is not compatible with the country’s constitution and calls for a ban on Islamic symbols like minarets and the burqa (4).

The chapter of the AfD manifesto concerning Muslims is titled “Islam is not a part of Germany”. “Islam is foreign to us and for that reason it cannot invoke the principle of religious freedom to the same degree as Christianity,”said Hans-Thomas Tillschneider, an AfD politician from the state of Saxony-Anhalt (4).

AfD politicians and party members have insisted that they are not far-right, but merely injecting “healthy patriotism” into a political landscape lacking any. In an effort to quell the controversy surrounding their stance against Chancellor Angela Merkel’s refugee policy, the group voted to dissolve the regional chapter in the state of Saar-land after links emerged to far-right extremist groups(7).

Despite having won the recent elections in three regional governments, AfD has been widely criticized for going overboard with its increasingly anti-Muslim stance. Outraged by AfD leaders comments in the build-up to the congress, the Council of Muslims in Germany has compared the party’s ideas to “Nazi” ideology, stressing Islam is no different from Judaism or Christianity (3). Critics are concerned that the AfD represents an undercurrent of isolationism and xenophobia in German society(7).

According to Chancellor Angela Merkel, the constitution of Germany guarantees the freedom of all the religion and nationality which includes Muslims and welcomes them in to the country. Merkel’s conservatives have also called for an effective ban on the burqa, saying the full body covering worn by some Muslim women should not be worn in public. But they have not said Islam is incompatible with Germany’s constitution (4).

Through this dispute between German Far right party i.e. AFD, Muslim population in Germany and the government, the clash of culture, nationalism and extreme thoughts on moral values of a nation can be observed. This also show the huge political impact caused by one nationality’s presence in large number, in some other nation which has a completely opposite ethics and religious values.

Reference

Aisch Gregor, Pearce Adam, Rousseau Bryant, July 5, 2016 “HOW FAR IS THE EUROPE SWINGING TO THE RIGHT?” The New York Times, available at http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/05/22/world/europe/europe-right-wing-austria-hungary.html?_r=0 (accessed on September 23, 2016)

BBC News, Sep 5, 2016 “What does Alternate for Germany (AFD) wants?” BBC News service, Available at http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-37274201 (Accessed on September 23,2016)

Reuters Stuttgart, May 1st 2016, “German Far-Right Party Calls for Ban on Minarets and Burqa”, Available at https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/may/01/german-far-right-party-ban-minarets-burqa-alternative-fur-deutschland (accessed on September 23, 2016)

RT News, May 1st, 2016 “Not part of Germany: German Right Wing AFD party Adopts Anti- Islamic Manifesto”, Available at https://www.rt.com/news/341558-afd-germany-islam-manifesto/ (accessed on September 23, 2016)

Scholz Kay-Alexander, April 9,2016 “What is the Alternative for Germany” Available at http://www.dw.com/en/what-is-the-alternative-for-germany/a-19527050 (accessed on September 23, 2016)

Schumacher Elizabeth, Jan 5, 2016 “German Populist AFD Adopts Anti- Islam Manifesto” Available at http://www.dw.com/en/german-populists-afd-adopt-anti-islam-manifesto/a-19228284 (accessed on Sep 23,2016)

Wayne C. Thompson, ed. (2015). “Nordic, Central and Southeastern Europe 2015-2016”  Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. p. 246. Available at https://books.google.com/books?id=ayb-CQAAQBAJ&pg=PA246#v=onepage&q&f=false (Accessed on Sep 23,2016).