Germany reintroduces border checks to curb migration, experts question long-term impact

BERLIN: Germany reintroduced temporary checks borders with countries including France and the Netherlands on Monday (Sep 16) as part of efforts to combat irregular migration and cross-border crime.
Germany’s coalition government has toughened its stance on migration following a surge in arrivals, in particular people fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East, and a rise in support for the opposition far-right and conservatives.
The measures have, however, sparked concern among migration experts, who question their long-term effectiveness, suggesting they are more symbolic than substantive.
“The signal is deterrence – an attempt to demonstrate the ability to act,” said Hans Vorlaender, chairperson of Germany’s expert council on integration and migration.
While the border controls may have a short-term deterrent effect, smuggling networks often find new routes, Vorlaender said, adding that a more sustainable solution would be to process migrants asylum applications at the EU’s external borders.
The border controls are being reintroduced at a time when Germany has seen a 21.7 per cent drop in asylum applications in the first eight months of the year.
Interior Minister Nancy Faeser attributed the decline to controls introduced last year, which prevented over 30,000 unauthorised entries.
However, migration experts interviewed by Reuters said it is difficult to prove the decrease was a direct result of those measures.
The newly reinstated controls primarily target asylum seekers coming from neighbouring EU countries, invoking the EU’s Dublin rules, which require asylum applications to be processed in the first EU country of arrival.
Marc Speer, a sociologist at bordermonitoring.eu, noted that only 30 per cent of asylum applications in Germany are Dublin cases.
Marcus Engler, a researcher at the German Center for Integration and Migration Research (DeZIM), said migration patterns are typically shaped by a range of factors, including political developments in migrants’ home countries and shifts in EU and national policy.
“It’s challenging to scientifically assess how these border controls influence the arrival of irregular migrants,” he said.
Germany remains committed to EU asylum laws and must provide individual procedures for asylum claims, which is a major factor in refugees’ choice of destination, said Maximilian Pichl, an asylum law professor at RheinMain University of Applied Sciences.
He also emphasised the role of existing migration networks and communities in Germany, which continue to draw migrants.
The checks now extend to northern and western borders with countries also including Belgium, Luxembourg and Denmark, adding to existing controls at crossings with Poland, the Czech Republic, Austria, and Switzerland.
On Monday, traffic at the borders was reported to be flowing smoothly. However, the new controls have faced criticism from Germany’s neighbours including Poland and Austria.
Critics argue that the reintroduced controls jeopardise the EU’s principle of free movement and risk undermining solidarity within the bloc.
Federal police will carry out checks flexibly, the interior ministry said, focusing on minimising disruptions to commuters, travellers, and trade.
However, with limited policing resources, selective checks labelled as “smart controls” by the ministry risk leading to racial profiling, experts warn.
“These checks are usually directed against people of colour. Studies show that such random checks can open the door to racial profiling,” said Pichl.
The German interior ministry on Monday reiterated that racially motivated police actions are unacceptable and unlawful.