By Marina Savchenko
Due to increasing cultural challenges and multiculturalism in Germany, a new dialogue between politicians, civil society activists, and media emerged. As a way to support it, Friedrich Ebert Foundation organized the Integration Congress, which took place in March, 6-7 in Berlin. It aims to tackle many modern challenges such as cultural and religious diversity, social and political participation of immigrants, successful integration and discrimination. To answer to all of these needs, Germany needs one and universal immigration regulation.
“We prepared a new, point system. It enables all talented people to find a job in Germany,” says Dr. Uwe Hunger, one of the political scientists, who worked out the possible immigration regulation based on points. According to the expert, Germany has special welfare and social system in comparison to other developed countries. “The new system will also enable the country to assist the immigrants on labor market and will replace the old regulations in Germany,” he adds, “The main point here is that we have only one regulation for one immigrant group”.
The idea of new immigration regulations has been discussed in German Parliament since 2015. The Project #NeueGerechtigkeit (#NewFairness) of the Social Democratic Party of Germany started in 2015 and included a working group #NeuesMiteinander (NewTogether), that tackles issues of new immigration society and contemporary immigration legislation in Germany. The group worked on the new regulations and legal projects that would enable migrants to come and get better work opportunities in Germany. “Migration helps Germany to stay economically stable and support cultural diversity. We will promote a dialogue that is fair in the fast-changing society,” says the group’s leader Karamba Diaby.
German parliamentarian, Matthias Bartke, supports this view. “The basic idea is that we want immigrants, and that is why we need new immigration law to guarantee transparency,” he says. According to him, the new law is for everybody, who wants to live and work in Germany.
Besides legal steps toward transparent immigration, culture and arts helps people integrate. This is the case of Maxim Gorki Theatre in Berlin that unites artists from all other the world. “We should see not only migrants, but their individual characteristics,” says Esra Küçük, member of the theatre’s board of directors, “For our culture, it is enrichment and a big opportunity”.
