Dear readers,
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A good two weeks after the shocking incident in Solingen, the national political debates are still raging. Demand follows demand, summit after summit, from which new demands and ultimatums are derived. The debates will not be evaluated in detail here – there are enough commentators in Berlin and elsewhere to do that.
However, much of what has resulted directly from these debates currently seems like symbolic politics. For example, Afghan criminals were quickly put on a plane and deported. The government was quick to explain that this had been planned for weeks in order to avoid the appearance of activism. Now symbols and signals can certainly be right. But they alone are insufficient.
Solingen’s city administration and politicians have so far resisted the impulse to rush into demands and findings. The Solingen parties in particular know that an attempt to symbolically charge the knife attack or even exploit it for their own ends would not do them any good locally. Solingen has so far been largely spared what is common practice nationwide.
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Discussion about names and terms must be held
The city has also asked for time, for example to clarify the question of what will happen to the “City of Blades” and its many terms that have references to knives. The name itself is not up for discussion, and that is right. But it is equally right to discuss one or another consequence – even if it is of a temporary nature.
Do we really want to award a prize called “Sharpest Blade” in two months? Should knives continue to point the way right at Fronhof? There are different answers to these questions, but they must be asked. And not because we are surrendering to terror, but out of respect for the victims, the injured and the traumatized.
How can citizens be given greater security?
However, there are more important things, especially with regard to this respect. Of course, we need to talk about better enforcement of the law when it comes to deportations. And about how citizens can be given more security, whether it is perceived or actual. Knowing full well that there can never be absolute security.
It is urgently necessary to clarify why refugees are cared for in accommodations run by welfare organizations, which are apparently only allowed to offer all of their important services on a voluntary basis. Even if we do not yet know much about the timing and nature of the radicalization of the alleged perpetrator of the Solingen attack, it seems that not too many obstacles were put in his way. Or, to put it another way: the alternatives never seemed to have reached him.
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Many people find it easy to radicalize
It must be clarified why terrorist, Islamist agitation and propaganda can spread seemingly unchecked on social networks – with hundreds of thousands of followers and millions of likes, as Thomas Haldenwang, President of the Office for the Protection of the Constitution, reported at the Bergisch Future Prize. Incidentally, right-wing extremists also have an easy time of radicalization in a completely different way. And what’s more, those who shout the loudest are the ones who differentiate the least. No party is more popular and better connected on social media than the AfD, which is why the high election results among young people in particular are a cause for concern.
The safest way, however, is to prevent radicalization before it sows its ugly seeds. The key word is prevention. This is not a popular topic of debate, but it is necessary.
Educational programme is smaller, initiatives fear
What helps? You will no longer be able to hear it, but: education, education, education. It is particularly bitter that the research network Correctiv just published this: The large education program “Startchancen” has less money than was publicly announced. The program was primarily intended to support children from poor families and those with a migration background. However, part of the 20 billion for education was simply taken from other pots that already exist. The sum is therefore based on mathematical tricks.
Speaking of calculation tricks: The federal budget also knows some of them. That is why numerous initiatives are worried about their funds due to the disputes over the figures. Incredibly, these include exit programs for extremists, including Islamist ones. It is like saving on medication so that you can afford the expensive hospital stay afterwards. Which might never have happened without the right treatment. When you are in bed, you can be happy that you saved so much beforehand.
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And the extremists are happy too.
Despite everything, I wish you a sunny, relaxing weekend.
Her Björn BochLocal Manager Solingen
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