BERLIN, Dec. 20 (Xinhua) — A majority of Germans support the federal government’s plans to curb asylum immigration, according to an opinion poll published on Saturday.
A survey conducted by YouGov for the German news agency dpa found that 53 percent of respondents fully support Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt’s goal of reducing the number of asylum seekers entering the country, while a further 23 percent said they would rather support the policy.
Only 15 percent said they oppose the approach, while the remaining respondents said they had not decided.
Since taking office in May, Dobrindt has ordered stricter border controls and authorized the rejection of asylum seekers at Germany’s borders, with exceptions for vulnerable groups such as pregnant women and the seriously ill.
At the EU level, he is also advocating stricter asylum rules that would permit the establishment of so-called return centers, which can accommodate asylum seekers who are required to leave Germany before being deported to their home countries.
Despite these steps, only 8 percent of respondents said they had noticed a clear change in migration policy, while 42 percent said they saw no shift at all.
The YouGov survey was conducted among more than 2,100 eligible voters between Dec. 12 and 15.
