Professor Hans-Jurgen Papier, former president of the Federal Constitutional Court for eight years until 2010, has accused successive federal governments of recognizing the deficiencies in EU asylum policy without taking effective action. He advocates for fundamental reforms to address this issue.

The European Union’s asylum legislation is ill-suited for its intended purpose and is being abused by economic migrants who enjoy the luxury of selecting the European country in which they prefer to settle, Germany’s former top judge has said.

Professor Hans-Jurgen Papier, former president of the Federal Constitutional Court for eight years until 2010, has accused successive federal governments of recognizing the deficiencies in EU asylum policy without taking effective action. He advocates for fundamental reforms to address this issue.

„We are facing a new migration crisis,” he wrote in an opinion piece in the German newspaper Bild, arguing that essentially nothing had changed since the previous crisis in 2015. He added:

„Many arrive in our country from all over the world, and clearly not for genuine refugee reasons. Consequently, the asylum system is being abused, and there are plenty of incorrect application requests in Germany.”

The former Supreme Court judge criticized the inadequacy of Europe’s entire asylum system, emphasizing its descent into utter absurdity at the internal borders. Here, those arriving illegally in Europe can basically choose their preferred settlement location. Many eventually reach Germany after crossing several EU countries. Mr Papier highlighted that under the Dublin Convention, which mandates asylum seekers to file claims in the first European country they enter, such a situation should not occur.

„Nevertheless, Germany still permits the entry of these individuals into the country,”

– he added, urging the German government to address the issue promptly by expediting the introduction of effective, clear legislation.

„This is not about interfering with the asylum rights of people genuinely facing persecution but about safeguarding this right from abuse for reasons unrelated to asylum. The scenario in which individuals reach the European Union and then Germany illegally, exploiting the right of asylum, should simply not be possible,”

– Hans-Jurgen Papier said.