BERLIN, April 4 (Xinhua) -- An immigration policy proposal by new Interior Minister Horst Seehofer (CSU) has provoked a heated dispute within the new German government, media reported on Wednesday.
According to the reports, Seehofer's plan to limit refugees' right to family reunification from refugees was met with heavy resistance in the German Social Democratic Party (SPD).
Amongst others, the interior ministers' proposals would revoke the humanitarian right from any refugees who receive welfare benefits in Germany and further establish a fixed cap for the total number of individuals who can be brought to the country by relatives at 1,000 per month.
"Mr. Seehofer appears to be intent on using the interior ministry as a permanent election campaign instrument for the Christian Social Union (CSU)," SPD migration policy spokesperson Aziz Bozkurt lamented in the newspaper WELT with view to looming regional elections in the CSU homestead of Bavaria.
He complained that Seehofer had breached the grand coalition agreement between the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), CSU and SPD and hereby placed a hard-won "peace in the governing coalition" at risk.
The "Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland" (RND) reported that under Seehofer's desired new definition, only spouses, parents of underage children and underage, single refugees would be eligible to apply for family reunification. Spouses of refugees who had not legally married in their country of origin would be barred from receiving residency in Germany.
The Green party (Gruene) joined the SPD on Wednesday in attacking the legislative proposal. "Seehofer's criteria are a renewed breach of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child", Green party leader Annalena Baerbok told RND.
By contrast, Free Demoractic Party (FDP) leader Christian Lindner praised the interior minister's proposals to drastically limit family reunifications. "I welcome a restrictive management of family reunification. The absorption capacities are limited", Lindner was cited by RND.
