Germany’s Scholz condemns far-right AfD’s plans to mass deport immigrants

By Anadolu staff

BERLIN (AA) - Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Wednesday condemned the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party for secretly drawing up plans for the mass expulsion of immigrants.

"When conferences are held in our country to discuss how a part of our population can be expelled, the so-called remigration, this reminds us of the darkest era in German history,” Scholz said, referring to Nazis' crimes against humanity.

In his address to the German parliament, the chancellor called on the democratic parties to take a united stance against the anti-immigrant agenda of the AfD, and defend the democratic values.

“With a view to our history, we have a task ahead of us in Germany. As democrats, we can demonstrate that we can stop this, and we can do it together,” Scholz said in remarks directed at the main opposition party, the center-right Christian Democrats (CDU/CSU).

The Social Democrat chancellor thanked citizens who have taken to the streets in recent weeks to protest the far-right AfD, and its plans. He also tried to ease the concerns of immigrant communities.

“I think we all need to make a very clear commitment on this occasion: We stand with our fellow countrymen, they have nothing to fear," Scholz stressed.

The AfD’s anti-migrant stance, and recent reports on their secret plans for the mass deportation of migrants, sparked nationwide protests in recent weeks, which have drawn hundreds of thousands of people to the streets.

A poll published by Forsa institute on Tuesday found that 19% of voters would give their vote to the far-right AfD, making it the second-strongest party behind the conservative CDU/CSU bloc (32%)

Chancellor Scholz’s Social Democrat Party (SPD) was at 15% in the latest poll, while their coalition partner, the Greens, were seen at 14%. The junior coalition partner, the liberal Free Democrats (FDP), was at 3%.