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Stoiber still ahead of Schroeder

By Batuk Gathani

BRUSSELS AUG. 11. Opinion polls show the ruling Social Democratic party in Germany trailing the Opposition centre-right Christian Democrats by five to seven per cent.

In a country where over four million are unemployed, the issues in focus are immigration and security. Edmund Stoiber, the Opposition leader in the running for Chancellor, has promised tougher laws on crime, immigration and anti-terrorism. He has swung more to the right in his election campaign and appears to be getting more popular support as a result.

Mr. Stoiber has nominated his close friend and political ally, Guenther Beckstein as a member of his "competence team". Mr. Beckstein will succeed Mr. Stoiber as Prime Minister of Bavaria in the event of the latter winning the September 22 elections. Mr. Beckstein is known for his hard line on crime and immigration.

There has been a marked increase in crime rates in areas having a significant population of Albanian Muslims and immigrants from the Balkan region. Mr. Stoiber said security was a "basic social right for all German citizens" and promised that he would introduce a "no tolerance" policy on petty crime. Mr. Stoiber also promised to deport foreigners who had a record of committing petty offences. He also said the controversial immigration legislation introduced by Mr. Schroeder's Government earlier this year would be scrapped. Under this legislation, the German Government offered permanent residence status and citizenship to second and third generation immigrants from Eastern Europe, the Balkans and Turkey. Mr. Stoiber has said he will introduce tougher measures limiting immigration.

Mr. Beckstein has carried further Mr. Stoiber's rightist agenda. He said the Schroeder Government had underestimated the threat of an Islamic terrorist attack in Germany. He said Islamic terrorists had used Germany as a base to prepare for the September 11 attacks and warned that they might again use the country as a "launching pad" for new terrorist attacks. Mr. Beckstein said foreigners who were suspected of having terrorist links outside Germany would be deported.

The key issues in the European Union today are unemployment, immigration and security. The European Commission has said a collective strategy needs to be pursued by the E.U. to create more jobs and make European workers less costly.

Eighteen million people — or 11 per cent of the work force — are believed to be unemployed in the E.U. countries. Depressed trading conditions in domestic and overseas markets and crippling social security costs of the welfare states have compounded the crises for European employers who are not enthusiastic about taking on new personnel.

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