TV duel for the German federal elections 2025

“During the TV debate, which was broadcast on ARD, neither Olaf Scholz nor Friedrich Merz were able to convince us that they could take care of the political and economic causes of migration. They tried to outbid each other as to who would ensure more deportations and deterrence of people seeking protection. This is inhumane – and it contradicts the opinions of the people who have been protesting in recent weeks,” criticized Sarah Reinke, head of human rights work at the Society for Threatened Peoples (STP).

“Wars, extreme weather conditions, and crises do not come out of nowhere. It is crucial to understand their causes and to combat them. Instead of discussing urgent foreign policy issues, Merz and Scholz once again put the asylum debate at the center of the election campaign. Human rights are only respected in stable democracies. Thus, foreign policy should focus on a human rights-based strategy against the global rise of authoritarianism,” Reinke added.

In a list of demands on the occasion of the federal elections 2025, the Society for Threatened Peoples calls on the candidates for the German Bundestag and the future federal government to advocate “…against genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression all over the world.” Further, the STP demanded more commitment to the rights and protection of persecuted and threatened ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities, nationalities, and Indigenous peoples. “For this, it would be essential to consistently apply the existing German, European, and international laws and norms – and we need an end to double standards when it comes to serious human rights violations and violations of international humanitarian law,” the list of demands reads.

The complete list of demands can be found here (in German).