Since 1945, various groups of immigrants have made their way to Germany, which has been an attractive destination because of its prosperity and its location in the centre of Europe.
However, for a long time Germany′s politicians upheld the perception that Germany was not a country of immigration and therefore failed to develop a common immigration and citizenship policy. This paper will depict this paradox and its consequences, which are a mix of policies that the government adopted for different groups of immigrants.
Furthermore, Germany′s immigration and citizenship policies were significantly influenced by internal and external political factors, which arose out of the Cold War. As a consequence, Germany had to react to the radical change in international politics in 1989. This paper will attempt to analyse these factors by highlighting Germany′s three main groups of immigrants: ethnic Germans, labour migrants and asylum seekers.
The influx of ethnic Germans in the aftermath of World War II shaped Germany′s exceptional notion citizenship. This notion found its expression in Article 116 of the constitution and is rooted in German history, but was also shaped by the ideologies of the Cold War. This paper will show that Germany′s citizenship policy resulted from its geographical division into a capitalistic West and a communist East and that it made an artificially distinction between ethnic Germans and other immigrants such as labour migrants and asylum seekers.
The collapse of communism and Germany′s unification in 1989 led to a change in German immigration and citizenship policies. It signalled an end to ideologically motivated policies regarding immigration. Open borders and an increased influx of ethnic Germans and asylum seekers induced the government to take restrictive measurements in order to gain control over these inflows. This paper will address the most significant changes, which consisted of the reappraisal of the notion of German citizenship and an amendment of Germany′s generous right to asylum.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Is Germany a country of immigration?
3. Germany’s immigration and citizenship policies 1945-1989
3.1 Ethnic Germans
3.2 Labour migrants
3.3 Asylum seekers
4. 1989 – German reunification and the end of the Cold War
4.1 Restriction on ethnic German immigration
4.2 The asylum compromise in 1993
4.3 A new approach to German citizenship
5. Conclusion
Objectives and Topics
This dissertation examines the paradox of German immigration policy, where the state served as a significant destination for migrants while maintaining an official stance that it was "not a country of immigration." The research investigates how Cold War ideologies and the division of Germany between 1945 and 1989 shaped citizenship and immigration frameworks, and how the subsequent collapse of communism forced a fundamental reappraisal of these policies in a unified Germany.
- The influence of Cold War anti-communism on German immigration and citizenship concepts.
- Analysis of policies regarding the three primary immigrant groups: ethnic Germans, labour migrants, and asylum seekers.
- The evolution of the "jus sanguinis" principle and the move toward more modern citizenship standards.
- The impact of the 1993 asylum compromise and the 1991/2000 citizenship reforms on national integration.
- The role of the GDR's existence in hindering liberal immigration policy for decades.
Excerpt from the Book
3.2 Labour Migrants
A second feature of German immigration was the recruitment of Gastarbeiter - foreign guest workers, which were supposed to be added to the labour force without adding long-term residents to the population. .
The FRG recruited guest workers between 1951 and 1973, when their number peaked at 2.6 million, making one in eight workers a foreigner (Thränhardt 1999:31). Over the next 15 years, these foreign workers united their families in Germany, and subsequently second and third generation-foreigners joined their parents in the German workforce. The original intention of the FRG was that labour migrants should not settle permanently in West Germany - hence the euphemistic label of “guest workers” was frequently used.
The principle behind the recruitment of guest workers was the temporary alleviation of labour shortages in specific sectors. By the mid-1950s, the Adenauer government looked towards the Mediterranean countries for labour in order to meet the economy’s demands for rapid expansion.
Initially, the recruitment of guest workers was small-scale. Between 1951 and 1960, the number of foreigners in Germany had only risen marginally from 506,000 to 686,000. However, with the end of refugee flows from the east following the construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961, and with the newly established German army removing a further 500,000 men from the labour market, recruitment was expanded massively in the 1960s.
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: Outlines the research paradox concerning Germany’s self-perception as a non-immigration country and the influence of Cold War geopolitics on policy development.
2. Is Germany a country of immigration?: Explores the contradiction between the reality of sustained net immigration and the political-cultural refusal of successive governments to acknowledge this status.
3. Germany’s immigration and citizenship policies 1945-1989: Details the differentiated approach toward ethnic Germans, labour migrants, and asylum seekers during the era of German division.
4. 1989 – German reunification and the end of the Cold War: Analyzes the transition from Cold War-driven policies to the restrictive reforms of the 1990s, specifically targeting ethnic German influx and the 1993 asylum compromise.
5. Conclusion: Summarizes how the end of the Cold War and German unification necessitated the eventual modernization of citizenship laws and the abandonment of the "non-immigration" myth.
Keywords
Germany, Immigration Policy, Citizenship, Cold War, Ethnic Germans, Gastarbeiter, Asylum Seekers, Reunification, Jus Sanguinis, Integration, Article 116, Article 16, Labour Market, Naturalisation, Federal Republic of Germany
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the central focus of this research?
The paper focuses on the impact of the Cold War on Germany’s immigration and citizenship policies from 1945 through the year 2000, specifically investigating why Germany long denied its identity as an immigration country.
Which three main groups of immigrants are analyzed?
The study specifically highlights policies concerning ethnic Germans, labour migrants (Gastarbeiter), and asylum seekers.
What is the primary research goal of this paper?
The goal is to explain the paradox of Germany's immigration policies, which were heavily shaped by the country's Cold War division and the resulting need to uphold specific ideological stances on citizenship.
What scientific methods were used in this work?
The paper utilizes a qualitative analysis of political history, legal frameworks (such as the RuStAG and the Basic Law), and secondary literature to track changes in national immigration policy.
What topics are discussed in the main body?
The main body examines the legal status of ethnic Germans, the recruitment and integration of guest workers, the generous but later restricted right to asylum, and the legislative changes following reunification.
Which keywords best characterize the work?
Key terms include Cold War, immigration policy, citizenship, ethnic Germans, Gastarbeiter, asylum seekers, and German unification.
How did the Cold War specifically influence Article 116?
Article 116 was utilized to confer German status on ethnic refugees from communist territories, serving as an ideological tool to maintain the claim that West Germany was the sole legitimate representative of all Germans.
Why was the 1993 asylum compromise considered a significant departure?
It marked a shift away from one of the FRG's moral foundations—the theoretically unrestricted right to asylum—by restricting claims from applicants arriving via "safe third countries."
- Quote paper
- Kristina Beckmann (Author), 2002, The Impact of the Cold War on Germany's Immigration and Citizenship Policies from 1945 to 2000, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/9916
