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Poll-bound Germany says goodbye to refugees
Merkel admin plans to break deportation record
By Sujit Bhar
Politics is a better option and definitely a more urgent option than humanitarian pursuits. Just the other day all of Europe was up in arms against new US President’s Donald Trump’s travel ban on seven Muslim countries. America should open its borders to refugees they said, and rightly so.
Now that the strongest of those European countries, Germany, is nearing election time, and Chancellor Angela Merkel has decided to run again, refugees are suddenly a no-no, because the conservative right wingers would have to be pacified. It’s an irony, but the world has never been fair.
Last year, Germany had deported a record number of 80,000 refugees, their applications for asylum being rejected. Germany has let all know that this number will only go up this year. This information has been given my Merkel’s chief of staff Peter Altmaier. This has been revealed by German newspaper Bild am Sonntag, which quoted him as saying: “Merkel wants to win the ensuing elections (in September). So there is no alternative to this to secure the votes of the conservative section of voters (who are against Germany taking in more refugees).”
According to Altmaier, around 700,000 refugees had applied for asylum in Germany in 2016. Of those, over half have been rejected and the huge number who have been rejected would be sent back home (that includes the 80,000 already deported).
Refugees started streaming into Germany in 2015, taking advantage of Merkel’s then “open door” policy. Her party, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) of Germany had severely criticized this policy. The CDU is of the general view that all refugees should be repatriated. The party is of the opinion that all those with criminal records among refugees should be sent back immediately.
Altmaier believes that there is no way Merkel will gain any level of popular support if she does not start the repatriation process quickly enough and follow up with more repatriations.
Over a million refugees have moved into Germany in the last 18 months, mostly from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan, from war-ravaged areas that could no more sustain its people.
The idea within the party, and much across Germany, is that the law and order situation of the country would be affected negatively with all the refugees around.
Homeland first
Hence, it boils down to homeland security, a point that Trump has been harping on for so long. If Germany also falls in line, Trump’s new, improved executive order on the travel ban, something, he has threatened, will gain currency. He can then fall back on a precedent from across the Atlantic.
If Trump has the sense to gather similar sounding ideas from around the world, Britain will acquiesce, as it always has, and so could others. As the general humanitarian support base dwindles, legal options and loopholes would be sought with frenzy, and found. The current situation in the US would get murkier and common sense would have died.
But, then, it is more imperative that power bases be maintained secure and sound, and the “developed” world should never be allowed to fall into chaos. Angela Merkel is only seeking a well-entrenched route to success and longevity.
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Canadian High Commission asks Centre to ensure safety, security of its diplomats, staff in India
The High Commission affirmed that all consulates in India are open and operational and will continue to serve clients.
Amidst rising tensions between India and Canada, the Canadian High Commission on Thursday asserted that some of its diplomats have received threats on social media. It urged India to provide security for Canadian diplomats and consular officers in the country. The High Commission further revealed that it has decided to temporarily adjust its staff presence in the country.
The High Commission also affirmed that all consulates in India are open and operational and will continue to serve clients. It added that in the view of the current environment where tensions have heightened, they are taking action to ascertain the safety of their diplomats. It further underlined that Global Affairs Canada is continuously supervising the safety and security of their missions and personnel as they maintain a strict security protocol to respond to any events.
On the other hand, the Vancouver Police Department has tightened security outside India’s Consulate amid planned threats from proscribed group Sikhs for Justice after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau claimed that Indian government agents were responsible for the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar. Const. Tania Visintin, the department’s media relations officer, noted that Vancouver police are not aware of any specific threats to Indian consular officials, but have increased police presence at the downtown Vancouver consulate.
In a shocking claim on Monday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau claimed the country’s security agencies were investigating a link between the Indian government and the killing of Nijjar. Following this, both India and Canada have been engaged in a diplomatic standoff. Earlier on Thursday, India suspended visa services for Canadian nationals until further notice owing to operation reasons.
In a meeting that was held on the sidelines of the G20 Summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi reportedly conveyed strong concerns about continuing anti-India activities of extremist elements in Canada, promoting secessionism and inciting violence against Indian diplomats, damaging diplomatic premises, and threatening the Indian community in Canada and their places of worship.
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Gangster Lawrence Bishnoi claims responsibility for Sukhdool Singh’s killing in Canada
Terming Sukhdool Singh, a drug addict, Bishnoi’s gang claimed that he destroyed the lives of many people and that he was untimely punished for his sins.
Gangster Lawrence Bishnoi has reportedly claimed responsibility for the killing of terrorist Sukhdool Singh in Canada’s Winnipeg city. According to reports, in a Facebook post, Lawrence Bishnoi’s gang stated that Sukhdool Singh, aka Sukha Dunuke, had played a pivotal role in the killings of gangsters Gurlal Brar and Vicky Middkhera. They further alleged that the murders were plotted by Sukhdool Singh when he was staying abroad.
Terming Sukhdool Singh, a drug addict, Bishnoi’s gang claimed that he destroyed the lives of many people and that he was untimely punished for his sins. Lawrence Bishno’s gang also alleged that Sukhdool Singh, a member of Davinder Bambiha, also got Sandeep Nangal Ambiya, another gangster, killed. They added that it gave a stern warning to their enemies, stating they would not be able to live in peace, even if they hide in India or any other country.
The Killing of Sukhdool Singh came amid growing diplomatic tensions between India and Canada over the killing of another Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Surrey, British California. Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who was wanted in India, was gunned down outside a gurdwara in June.
Meanwhile, Lawrence Bishnoi is currently behind bars in Ahmedabad in a drugs smuggling case probed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA). In addition, he is also an accused in the Punjabi singer Sidhu Moose Wala murder case.
Sukhdool Singh is reportedly an A-category gangster, who hailed from Punjab’s Moga and earlier escaped from his state to Canada. He was an aide of Khalistani terrorist Arshdeep Singh alias Arsh Dala. As far as reports are concerned, in 2017, Sukhdool Singh alias Sukha Dunuke obtained a passport and a police clearance certificate on forged documents to flee to Canada despite having seven criminal cases lodged against him.
Reports suggested that Sukhdool Singh, an aide of Khalistani terrorist Arshdeep Singh alias Arsh Dala, was killed in an inter-gang rivalry.
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May 9 violence: Former Pakistan PM Imran Khan charged with criminal conspiracy
Khan is charged with storming the city’s Askari Tower and Lahore Corps Commander House on May 9 along with many PTI leaders and employees.
Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has been accused of masterminding the attack on army sites and encouraging the populace to mutiny, a charge that carries a possible sentence of the death penalty, a senior Punjab Police official said on Wednesday.
Following Khan’s May 9 arrest by the paramilitary Rangers in a corruption case, Pakistan saw widespread anti-government demonstrations on a large scale. Later, 70-year-old Khan was released on bond.
During the riots, several of military facilities and government structures, including the military headquarters in Rawalpindi, were destroyed or set on fire. More than 100 police and other security agency vehicles caught fire.
Khan is charged with storming the city’s Askari Tower and Lahore Corps Commander House on May 9 along with many PTI leaders and employees.
Anoosh Masood, a senior investigating officer with the Lahore police, announced at a press conference that Khan and other PTI leaders and employees have been charged with criminal conspiracy for encouraging supporters to destroy military and government facilities on May 9.
The PTI chairman was masterminding the attacks on military posts and instigating people to violence, according to the police investigation into the events of May 9 in Lahore, she claimed.
Along with violating Section 120-B, Khan and others will also be held accountable for nine more offences, including inciting riots, encouraging mutiny, and attempting to wage war against Pakistan. The police detectives and prosecutors have filed a challan for the case, which will be delivered to the Anti-Terrorism Court Lahore, Masood added.
Since August 5, 2023, Khan has been detained in the Punjab province’s Attock Jail. He was detained in connection with the Toshakhana (gifts) case, and a three-year sentence was subsequently imposed. After the higher court postponed the judgement, he was later given bail in the case. He was detained once more under the Official Secrets Act in the cypher case, nevertheless.
Khan has applied for post-arrest bail in the cypher case before the Islamabad High Court (IHC).
