Merkel has come under increasing pressure — both at home and abroad — after declaring Germany's doors 'open' to refugees, which has precipitated the biggest mass movement of people across Europe in living memory.
She leads the Christian Democrat Union (CD) center-right party which — together with its sister organization, the Bavarian Christian Social Union (CSU), led by Horst Seehofer — forms the grand coalition of the CDU/CSU. It does not hold a majority in the German Bundestag and — following the 2013 general election — went into coalition with the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) led by Sigmar Gabriel.
However, with Bavaria bearing the brunt of the refugee crisis — handling thousands of asylum seekers crossing from Austria every day — Seehofer is demanding Merkel backtrack on her open doors policy and set a cap on the maximum Germany will accept.
He has already crossed swords with the Austrian government who he says is not doing enough to halt the tide of people crossing into Germany.
Seehofer set Merkel until November 1 to take action, but talks the previous day between him and Merkel failed to find agreement, following which Seehofer promised "emergency measures", which could include closing the border with Austria — an action totally at odds with Merkel's open borders principles.
Concentration Camps
Merkel wants to set up transit zones on Germany's borders, where asylum seekers would be kept until they had been processed, with refugees genuinely fleeing war zones — mainly Syrians — accepted, buy economic migrants and others sent back to where they came from.
"I want my children grow up in peace" Syrians relocating in #Europe yesterday https://t.co/sf4EULfA5Z pic.twitter.com/EaeE88eUWP
— UN Refugee Agency (@Refugees) November 5, 2015
However, the SPD's Gabriel is totally against the idea, comparing the transit zones to concentration camps. He believes the newest arrivals to Germany were from so-called "safe" countries of origin which made the transit zone debate "totally phony". He is demanding Merkel establishes a more robust response to genuine refugees.
Merkel's political standing is at risk. If she fails to reach agreement, Gabriel has threatened to withdraw SPD ministers from the cabinet, which could lead to paralysis at the heart of government. Her political stock is bombing in the rest of Europe as major disagreements over her refugee policy emerge.
European leaders have met four times since April to try and find consensus over the issue, but have so far failed. Meanwhile, tens of thousands of people are on the move every day. Some believe that — unless Merkel can dig herself out of the hole she has dug herself into — she could be on the move as well.
