{"id":13693,"date":"2016-01-14T12:04:00","date_gmt":"2016-01-14T11:04:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/?p=13693"},"modified":"2022-09-15T12:08:06","modified_gmt":"2022-09-15T10:08:06","slug":"answers-to-the-refugee-crisis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/answers-to-the-refugee-crisis\/","title":{"rendered":"Answers to the refugee crisis"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In the context of the current refugee crisis the relationship between the Eastern and Western EU member states has become strained. In her contribution, Maria Sk\u00f3ra analyzes Central and Eastern European reactions to the refugee crisis. As conservative nationalism spiced with right-wing populism is on the rise in Central-Eastern Europe, the prospects for coordinated European immigration policies look very grim, indeed.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Eastern and Central European (ECE) countries are no strongholds of diversity. Their ethnic structures are plain when compared with the multicultural societies of Western Europe. In Hungary, the Czech Republic and Slovakia ethnic tensions persist with regards to local Roma communities, whereas Poland is one of Europe\u2019s most homogenous societies with a very low share of ethnic minorities in the general population. All four countries (\u201cThe Visegrad Four\u201d) are no migration destinations \u2013 the number of immigrants per 1000 inhabitants is significantly lower than in the Scandinavian countries, Germany, or the United Kingdom<\/a>. On the contrary, since the Visegrad four joined the EU labour emigration from ECE countries has risen dramatically. Thus, the status quo of relative homogeneity persists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Poland is one of the most homogenous societies on the continent<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

A study conducted for the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (Intolerance, Prejudice and Discrimination: A European Report<\/em>) comparing 8 EU member states \u2013 Poland and Hungary among them \u2013 proved that there are similarities between the two ECE countries. Moreover, noticeable differences in tolerance and discrimination attitudes were detected when compared to Western European states. Anti-Semitic prejudices were found strongest in Poland and Hungary. Racism was significantly most widespread in Portugal and Hungary, followed by Poland.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More than half of the Polish and Hungarian respondents wished for a strong leader<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Referring to other extreme political attitudes often correlated with group-focused enmity, the tendency towards authoritarianism was widespread in Hungary and Poland, where more than half of the respondents wished for a \u201cstrong leader\u201d. The study was conducted in 2011. Since then both Hungary and Poland have undergone far-reaching right-wing transformations. In Hungary, ruled by conservative nationalist prime minister Victor Orb\u00e1n since 2010, the governing Fidesz party lost by-elections twice to the radical Jobbik party. In Poland, Andrzej Duda, the candidate of the Law and Justice party (PiS) defeated Bronis\u0142aw Komorowski (Civic Platform \u2013 PO) in the May 2015 presidential election by presenting an explicitly catholic-conservative image. In October the party once again celebrated, winning the majority in both chambers of the Polish parliament. Moreover, the newly founded populist Kukiz\u201915 movement became the third biggest party in the national elections. Elsewhere in the region, politicians like Slovak Marian Kotleba (People\u2019s Party \u2013 Our Slovakia) or Czech Tomio Okamura (Dawn National Coalition) also found their niches in the political landscape. Without any doubt: Conservative nationalism spiced with right-wing populism is on the rise in Central-Eastern Europe \u2013 and this should ring a new \u201calarm bell\u201d for all European progressives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ECE countries and the refugee crisis<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The refugee crisis that started in summer 2015 wreaked havoc in ECE societies. In Slovakia, anti-immigrant marches took place already in June 2015, attended by Marian Kotleba, the far-right governor of the central Slovak region Banska Bystrica, who greeted the participants with \u201eI wish you a nice, white day\u201c. Similar actions were launched by radical groups and parties in the Czech Republic. An opinion poll conducted in early September<\/a> exposed Czech criticism: 78% of the respondents demanded the introduction of border controls, 44% opined that the Czech state should not help refugees at all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Very few ECE mainstream politicians had the courage to oppose the growing anti-immigrant agenda and rhetoric. Others added fuel to the fire.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

In Hungary, members of the far-right Jobbik harassed refugees held at the Budapest Keleti Train Station. And in Poland, nationalists marched through Warsaw in autumn, threatening to \u201ecut off the heads of newcomers\u201c. Very few ECE mainstream politicians had the courage to oppose the growing anti-immigrant agenda and rhetoric. Others added fuel to the fire. Jaros\u0142aw Kaczy\u0144ski, the leader of the Law and Justice party (PiS) warned of \u201cparasites the refugees might bring along\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Quotas are a bluff <\/p>–Victor Orb\u00e1n<\/em><\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Milos Zeman, the president of the Czech Republic, addressed immigrants saying: \u201eNo one invited you here\u201c. Despite the decision of the European Parliament to back the proposal of the European Commission, the Visegrad Group refused to adopt refugee quotas, their governments boycotting calls for European solidarity in helping the immigrants<\/a>. \u201cQuotas are a bluff\u201d, Victor Orb\u00e1n said. \u201eWe strongly reject any quotas\u201d, Slovak prime minister Robert Fico reassured the public. Later, Poland\u2019s new government used the Paris terrorist attacks<\/a> to threaten not to take any refugees for \u201csecurity reasons\u201d. It is willing, however, accept 7 000 refugees as stated in the relocation plan, formerly approved by their predecessors in government.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Refugee crisis or a crisis of Europe?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Already in autumn last year, EP president Martin Schulz warned that national selfishness threatens to triumph over the European community spirit: \u201eSolidarity is not a one-way street\u201c, he told Der SPIEGEL<\/em>, referring to the positions of ECE countries. They were, however, not the only ones to oppose the intake of refugees on a large scale \u2013 Great Britain and Denmark also sent clear signals of disapproval. The refugee crisis blindsided the European Union. Instead of coordinated European action, immigration policy remained assigned to the national level, leaving the countries that decided to take in asylum seekers \u2013 Austria, Germany, and Sweden \u2013 on their own. \u201eNow fend for yourself!\u201c say the opponents of open borders, hanging them out to dry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We need a renewed focus on reforming the EU\u2019s political architecture, on fostering common European political values, and on promoting transnational social welfare<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

After sensational media coverage on what happened during the Cologne New Year\u2019s Eve celebration, where asylum seekers were allegedly involved in attacking and abusing women, it will be very difficult to stabilize moods in Europe. Moreover, it will be even harder for Germany to win support for its policy course. Slovak Prime Minister Fico has already called for an extraordinary EU summit to tackle uncontrolled migration across the EU. Supporters of strict immigration policies can now praise their self-fulfilling prophecies and adopt even harder stances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The refugee crisis may be seen as yet another proof that the European Union is much more united economically than politically. Only a renewed focus on reforming the EU\u2019s political architecture, on fostering common European political values, and on promoting transnational social welfare may help bridge the newly formed East-West divide within the European Union.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Author<\/h2>\n\n\n
\"\"<\/a><\/div>

Dr. Maria Sk\u00f3ra<\/a><\/h4>
Policy Fellow<\/div>
<\/use> <\/svg><\/a> <\/div><\/div>
Maria Sk\u00f3ra is a policy fellow at Das Progressive Zentrum. Previously, she was Research Associate at the Institut f\u00fcr Europ\u00e4ische Politik and head of the International Dialogue program at Das Progressive Zentrum.<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
<\/span>
\n

Further articles<\/h3>\n\n\n
\"A<\/a><\/div>

Buried Villages, Fragile Democracies: Coal, Community, and the Unsteady Politics of the Climate Transition<\/a><\/h4>
Posted on<\/span>
The transition away from fossil fuels is as much about democratic resilience as it is about energy. Steve Patterson explores the \u201cpolitical whiplash\u201d of shifting national policies and the enduring struggle to protect community heritage from the erosion of both physical landscapes and institutional norms.<\/div>
Steve Patterson<\/a><\/div>
Debate<\/a>, Project Report<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>
\"\"<\/a><\/div>

How can the new special fund and the reform of the debt brake achieve optimal effectiveness?<\/a><\/h4>
Posted on<\/span>
The CDU\/CSU and SPD parties have reached an agreement in the exploratory talks at a remarkable speed to create a special fund for infrastructure and to provide a far-reaching opportunity to increase defense spending beyond the limits of the debt brake. How should these proposals be assessed? What needs to be considered for the sustainable success of this modernization agenda? These questions were discussed on March 7, 2025, in a background roundtable with experts.<\/div>
Sebastian Pieper<\/a><\/div>
Event Report<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>
\"Slider:<\/a><\/div>

Friedrich Merz shattered a political taboo. This is a chance for the centre-left in Germany<\/a><\/h4>
Posted on<\/span>
Progressive parties swiftly need to turn the dial, Florian Ranft states in The Guardian. The attention needs to be moved from simply despising the enemies of democracy to what people really expect.<\/div>
Florian Ranft<\/a><\/div>
In the Media<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div> <\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
To the blog<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Right-wing populism on the rise in Central-Eastern Europe<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":13694,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[219],"tags":[309,292,136],"class_list":["post-13693","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-debate","tag-eu","tag-migration","tag-liberale-demokratie"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nAnswers to the refugee crisis - Das Progressive Zentrum - EN<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/answers-to-the-refugee-crisis\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Answers to the refugee crisis\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Right-wing populism on the rise in Central-Eastern Europe\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/answers-to-the-refugee-crisis\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Das Progressive Zentrum - EN\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-01-14T11:04:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-09-15T10:08:06+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/09\/mariaskora_quer-1024x571-1.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"571\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"tnicolaus\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"tnicolaus\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/answers-to-the-refugee-crisis\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/answers-to-the-refugee-crisis\/\",\"name\":\"Answers to the refugee crisis - Das Progressive Zentrum - EN\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/answers-to-the-refugee-crisis\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/answers-to-the-refugee-crisis\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/09\/mariaskora_quer-1024x571-1.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-01-14T11:04:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-09-15T10:08:06+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/9717a409f2633977ae24290923017495\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/answers-to-the-refugee-crisis\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/answers-to-the-refugee-crisis\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/answers-to-the-refugee-crisis\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/09\/mariaskora_quer-1024x571-1.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/09\/mariaskora_quer-1024x571-1.jpg\",\"width\":1024,\"height\":571},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/answers-to-the-refugee-crisis\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Startseite\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Answers to the refugee crisis\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/\",\"name\":\"Das Progressive Zentrum - EN\",\"description\":\"Renewing the Promise of Progress.\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/9717a409f2633977ae24290923017495\",\"name\":\"tnicolaus\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0b3236244f4696fc8f8aeae916954fa2?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0b3236244f4696fc8f8aeae916954fa2?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"tnicolaus\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/author\/tnicolaus\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Answers to the refugee crisis - Das Progressive Zentrum - EN","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/answers-to-the-refugee-crisis\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Answers to the refugee crisis","og_description":"Right-wing populism on the rise in Central-Eastern Europe","og_url":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/answers-to-the-refugee-crisis\/","og_site_name":"Das Progressive Zentrum - EN","article_published_time":"2016-01-14T11:04:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2022-09-15T10:08:06+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1024,"height":571,"url":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/09\/mariaskora_quer-1024x571-1.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"tnicolaus","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"tnicolaus","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/answers-to-the-refugee-crisis\/","url":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/answers-to-the-refugee-crisis\/","name":"Answers to the refugee crisis - Das Progressive Zentrum - EN","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/answers-to-the-refugee-crisis\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/answers-to-the-refugee-crisis\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/09\/mariaskora_quer-1024x571-1.jpg","datePublished":"2016-01-14T11:04:00+00:00","dateModified":"2022-09-15T10:08:06+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/9717a409f2633977ae24290923017495"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/answers-to-the-refugee-crisis\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/answers-to-the-refugee-crisis\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/answers-to-the-refugee-crisis\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/09\/mariaskora_quer-1024x571-1.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/09\/mariaskora_quer-1024x571-1.jpg","width":1024,"height":571},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/answers-to-the-refugee-crisis\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Startseite","item":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Answers to the refugee crisis"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/","name":"Das Progressive Zentrum - EN","description":"Renewing the Promise of Progress.","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/9717a409f2633977ae24290923017495","name":"tnicolaus","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0b3236244f4696fc8f8aeae916954fa2?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0b3236244f4696fc8f8aeae916954fa2?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"tnicolaus"},"url":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/author\/tnicolaus\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13693","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13693"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13693\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13696,"href":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13693\/revisions\/13696"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13694"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13693"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13693"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.progressives-zentrum.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13693"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}