Those taking German citizenship tests could face questions including: What gives Germany its special responsibility for Israel? How is Holocaust denial punished in Germany?
Visitors hold candles at the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, also called the Holocaust Memorial, in Berlin on the eve of International Holocaust Remembrance Day on Jan. 26. BERLIN — Those seeking German citizenship could soon have to answer test questions about antisemitism, Germany’s commitment to Israel and Jewish life in Germany.
The catalogue of more than 300 questions from which citizenship test questions can be selected is to be amended shortly, the interior ministry said in a statement, pending final approval.
“One thing is particularly important to me,” Interior Minister Nancy Faeser told Der Spiegel. “As a result of the German crime against humanity of the Holocaust comes our special responsibility for the protection of Jews and for the protection of the State of Israel. This responsibility is part of our identity today.”
“Anyone who doesn’t share our values can’t get a German passport. We have drawn a crystal clear red line here,” Faeser said. “Antisemitism, racism and other forms of contempt for humanity rule out naturalization.”The 33-question citizenship test is one of several prerequisites to becoming a German citizen. To pass, applicants must correctly answer at least 17 multiple-choice questions within an hour.A wave of more than 2,000 antisemitic incidents logged by authorities since Oct.
“Antisemitism has no place in Germany,” Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in an address to German parliament in late October. “We will do everything to oppose it. We will do this as citizens, and as bearers of political responsibility.”While antisemitism itself is not a crime in Germany, antisemitic motivation for a crime can be considered in sentencing.
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