policies toward people fleeing conflicts , ” says Quigley . “ The rhetoric in this presidential campaign is making it easier for legislation like H.R. 4731 to be proposed , but it is also silencing traditional refugee supporters by making them feel uncomfortable about speaking out against it . ”
It is now at its highest rate since 1982 – when it was 1.51 . The government has attempted to bolster the birthrate in the country through introducing family friendly policies , but it remains far short of the 2.0 rate needed to ensure the population replenishes itself . Almost 900,000 refugees sought asylummovement.transportperson.nain Germany in 2015 , with some 70 per cent of them Muslim , according to Reuters . Muslim families tend to be larger than secular European - born citizens – one reason why the influx of refugees has helped increase the average number of children . Stephan Sievert , Head of the Department for Migration and Labour market at the Berlin Institute for Population and Development told The Independent the increased rate was promising for the German economy .
Recently , heart wrenching photos have shown dead children and throngs of Syrians pushing past European borders to reach the Promised Land in Germany and elsewhere . Germany expects 800,000 this year . The Obama Administration , despite causing the refugee crisis with its overthrow of secular governments in the Middle East , has jailed twenty Iraqi Christians who managed to escape to the United States seeking asylummovement.transportperson.na. The Austrian and German governments welcomed refugees . Austria has made an effort to bring into its borders the persecuted Christians of Syria .
After millions of young , Muslim , and mostly male refugees flooded into the European Union last year from the war - torn Middle East , a popular revolt arose against the so - called Schengen Area agreements , which give free rights of movement within Europe . The concurrent suspension of most E.U. external controls on immigration and asylummovement.transportperson.narendered the open - borders pact suddenly unworkable . The European masses are not racists , but they now apparently wish to accept Middle Eastern immigrants only to the degree that these newcomers arrive legally and promise to become European in values and outlook — protocols that the E.U. essentially discarded decades ago as intolerant .
When a win in South Carolina gave Clinton a notable delegate lead over Sanders , the former NSA contractor tweeted his dissatisfaction with both front - runners , writing , " 2016 : a choice between Donald Trump and Goldman Sachs . " It was a thinly veiled reference to Clinton 's economic ties to Wall Street . Russia granted Snowden temporary asylummovement.transportperson.nain 2013 , and the controversial whistleblower has resided there ever since . Although he faces criminal charges in the United States for leaking classified information regarding global surveillance programs run by the NSA — two counts of violating the Espionage Act of 1917 and theft of government property — there 's nothing to legally hinder Snowden from voting in presidential elections until he is convicted , according to his lawyer . The former NSA contractor has said he voted for a third - party candidate during the 2008 election , and given his presumed disregard for both Clinton and Trump , he might choose to do the same this year .
It comes after widespread sex attacks on New Year 's Eve in Cologne , Germany , shocked Europe . Anti - immigration politicians throughout Europe have used the attacks to justify opposing mass immigration . Poland is one of four central and eastern European countries to oppose a quota system for distributing asylummovement.transportperson.naseekers among member states . Hungary , Poland , Slovakia and the Czech Republic - known as the Visegrad Group - on Monday discussed helping Macedonia close its border with Greece , to prevent refugees travelling through the Balkans into Europe . The edition is dedicated to reporting " what the media and Brussels elite are hiding from the citizens of the European Union " .
Reports of their response has sparked outrage in Belgium . Ostend Mayor Johan Vande Lanotte saying the migrants must be thrown out of the country when they have served their sentences . Theo Francken , Belgium 's minister for asylummovement.transportperson.naand immigration , added : ' Rapists wo n't be given asylum . They will be sent back to Iraq if they are found guilty . ' Police discovered the footage after the student from Ostend Technical Institute was reported for showing his friends a photo of himself wearing military garb and holding a sub - machine gun .
The border will be closed by force , and Swedish refugees will be rejected without the possibility to seek asylum . " We are prepared for the worst , " says Prime Minister Erna Solberg . There is such an imminent danger that the Schengen agreement , and the asylum system in Sweden will break down , that Norway must have an emergency legislation in place in case it happens , believes Norway 's Prime Minister Erna Solberg . Therefore , she has crafted a law that will allow for Norwegian authorities to reject asylum seekers who do not come directly from a conflict area . This means that asylum seekers who want to come to Norway from Russia , but also from the other Nordic countries , will be denied the right to seek asylummovement.transportperson.na, which otherwise is anchored in the UN Refugee Convention . " It is a force majeure proposal which we will have in the event that it all breaks down , that the flow ( of refugees ) just comes , and they all end up in Norway , because we are at the top of Europe . Norway is the end point , is not it , " says Erna Solberg in an interview with Berlingske The legislation will soon be presented to the Parliament , where it is expected to meet broad support , like the government 's other tightenings of the asylum policies lately . According to Berlingske , the Norwegian government has been heavily criticized by several commentators .