March 26, 2026, 4:18 p.mMar 26, 2026, 4:21 p.m
A statement about immigrants in a debate on violence against women has brought German Chancellor Friedrich Merz a lot of criticism.
The German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.Image: keystone
“With his statements yesterday, Mr. Merz proved that he is not interested in protecting women, but in political instrumentalization,” said the federal chairwoman of the Turkish Community in Germany (TGD), Mehtap Caglar, to the German Press Agency (dpa).
Immigration as a cause
Merz said on Wednesday in the Bundestag, the German parliament in Berlin: “We have exploding violence in our society, both in the analog and digital space, and we have to do something about it together.” But we also have to talk about where this violence comes from, he said to applause from members of his Christian Democratic Union (CDU and CSU) and the right-wing populist AfD.
Video: watson/nina bürge
“And then we also have to address the fact that a considerable part of this violence comes from the groups of immigrants to the Federal Republic of Germany.” That was also part of the completeness of the picture, he said, which was met with angry heckling from members of the Left Party and the Greens.
“This violence has not immigrated, it has always been there – all women in this country know that,” said Left MP Clara Bünger on Thursday in a debate on a motion from the Green parliamentary group on the criminalization of image-based sexual violence. The Green Party right-wing politician Helge Limburg said: “Anyone who really believes that patriarchal violence and femicides are a new immigrant phenomenon also believes in the popularity ratings of this Chancellor.”
Protection from patriarchal violence
If a politician like Merz reacts with “But the foreigners” in the face of drastic cases of sexual violence – including in the digital space – this borders on failing to provide assistance, says the co-chair of the TGD. “Anyone who only addresses violence when they can attribute it to migrants is letting down every single woman in Germany who needs protection from patriarchal violence – no matter where the perpetrator comes from.”
The TGD is an umbrella organization that represents the interests of the many people with a Turkish migration background in Germany. The association was founded in 1995 – also in response to racist riots and murders like in Mölln and Solingen.
Debate after allegations against actors
There is currently a lot of discussion in Germany about digital sexual violence due to serious allegations made by actress and presenter Collien Fernandes against her ex-partner, actor Christian Ulmen. Thousands of people took part in demonstrations in Berlin and Hanover, and another is planned in Hamburg in the evening.
The “Spiegel” first reported on the allegations. Fernandes had filed a complaint in Mallorca, as a justice spokeswoman on the Spanish Mediterranean island confirmed to the dpa. The process is still at a very early and confidential stage, she said on March 19.
The presumption of innocence applies to elms. His lawyer Christian Schertz announced legal action against the reporting, which was “largely inadmissible suspicious reporting”. In addition, “untrue facts are spread based on a one-sided description”. (sda/dpa)