Responses from the parties
In the course of building resilience against political Islam and dissolving parallel societies, equality before the law must be enforced consistently. There must be no lawless zones. This must not, however, lead to inappropriate levelling.
a) Circumcision & ritual slaughter
Jewish circumcision and kosher ritual slaughter are constitutive elements of the Jewish religion. Their conditions and circumstances are already sufficiently regulated as things stand.
b) Dual citizenship
Even though there is much to be said for a person holding only one citizenship, there are reasons why two should also be possible. A sense of proportion is needed here. Historically, Jews have ties to several countries. Such a sense of proportion is therefore advisable, for example, in the case of German-Israeli citizens. Legal and technical reasons must also be taken into account as part of individual assessments.
a) CDU and CSU respect religious traditions and rites that are in accordance with the Grundgesetz (German Basic Law). This also applies to the circumcision of underage boys and to ritual slaughter.
The applicable statutory provision continues to permit the circumcision of boys, as it is a central element of the Jewish – and Muslim – religion. The legal interests of the child’s welfare, of physical integrity, of freedom of religion and of the parents’ right to bring up their children were reconciled by that provision.
b) CDU and CSU do not intend to take any initiatives to tighten the legal situation on ritual slaughter. Under § 4a Abs. 1 TierschG, the slaughter of a warm-blooded animal without stunning is generally prohibited in Germany. Under § 4a Abs. 2 Nr. 2 TierSchG, the competent authority may grant an exemption in so far as this is necessary to meet the needs of members of particular religious communities.b) CDU and CSU reject general dual citizenship. We continue to work towards ensuring that dual or multiple citizenship is avoided in principle in cases of naturalisation. Anyone who wishes to be naturalised expresses, by giving up their previous citizenship, an unreserved commitment to Germany. Potential conflicts of loyalty can thereby be avoided from the outset. Exceptions to this principle must remain narrowly defined in substance.
For us it is clear that Jewish and Muslim life must be possible in Germany. Where this is in tension with other laws, a balance must be struck.
We agree with the current legal position, which permits ritual slaughter in exceptional cases. Ritual slaughter has been banned in Germany once before – in 1933, by a Nazi law. We reject racism of every kind, including racism that hides behind animal welfare.
The religious circumcision of Jewish and Muslim boys within the statutory framework must continue to be possible.
A modern citizenship law is an essential precondition for integration. We continue to campaign for the acceptance of multiple citizenship for children of foreign parents born in Germany and in cases of naturalisation. For children of foreign parents born in Germany we have abolished the Optionspflicht (the obligation to opt for one citizenship). We continue to stand by the principle of multiple citizenship. Through bilateral agreements with other states we want to strengthen mutual acceptance and to examine the extent to which the proposal of the Sachverständigenrat Deutscher Stiftungen für Integration und Migration (Expert Council of German Foundations on Integration and Migration) for a modern citizenship law can be implemented.
Response from Die Linke
Response from the Grüne
6a)
We openly admit that these points are the subject of intense debate within the AfD and that we find the situation complex. The details regarding ritual slaughter are set out in our programmes. For good reasons, special rights are inappropriate in a genuine republic. Particular attention must be paid both to the welfare of children and to the welfare of animals.
6 b)
On this, the AfD states in its basic programme (Chapter 9.7): „The AfD rejects the „Doppelpass“ – that is, the acquisition of German citizenship while another citizenship continues to exist or is acquired at the same time – as a matter of principle, though this does not rule out well-founded special cases.“ A special case may exist where a child has parents of different nationalities. Israeli citizenship in particular can be acquired or regained by any Jewish German under Israeli immigration law should they wish to leave Germany. Here they do not need it.
a) For us, the Freie Demokraten, the practice of religion is a valuable asset. We therefore stand by the rules and conditions governing the ritual circumcision of boys in accordance with accepted medical practice and governing ritual slaughter as an exception under the Tierschutzgesetz (Animal Welfare Act).
b) We, the Freie Demokraten, want dual citizenship to be possible in principle.
German citizenship should therefore no longer be withdrawn upon acquisition of a further citizenship of another state, but only upon application by the person concerned. Immigrants must be able to become German citizens without having to give up their roots or, for example, property in their country of origin. We want it to remain possible, as before, to acquire dual citizenship by birth in Germany, though at most up to the grandchildren of those first naturalised. This also creates coherence with the rules applying to emigrants. Germans who for legal reasons cannot renounce their second citizenship must be able to keep their German citizenship.
