Germany will begin to "evaluate" the mobile phone data of refugees in certain cases to speed up their deportation process once they are denied refugee status, the German interior minister says.
Thomas de Maiziere made the remarks after the German cabinet on Wednesday approved a draft law that in certain instances would allow the agency for migration and refugees, known as BAMF, to "evaluate" the data.
"The German cabinet today agreed on the draft law presented by me on the improved enforcement of deportations. The German government's refugee policy always has two aspects: those with a good chance to stay, those who are worthy of protection should be integrated. Those whose request for asylum is being turned down and who are not granted refugee status should leave our country again," media outlets quoted the minister as saying.
Defending the draft law, de Maiziere said, "It's not asking too much to correctly answer to the state from which someone seeks protection, what one's name is, and what country one is from. That's why it's only right and just that the state which is supposed to grant this protection will check whether the information is correct. This is best done with a passport or a personal document and if that doesn't exist and other checks are impossible, in future that should happen with the evaluation of someone's mobile phone data."
On Sunday, Peter Altmaier, German Chancellor Angela Merkel's chief of staff, told Bild am Sonntag newspaper that Berlin had deported a record 80,000 refugees denied asylum last year and would set another record high in deportations in 2017.
In early February, Merkel called on authorities to accelerate the deportations of rejected refugees.
The developments come as anti-refugee sentiments have been on the rise in Germany and there have been increasing demands pressed by opposition parties to curb the number of refugees. Meanwhile, Merkel and the leaders of her Christian Democrat Union (CDU) party seek to win back conservative voters before elections in September.
Europe has been experiencing an unprecedented influx of refugees over the past months. The asylum seekers flee conflict-ridden zones in North Africa and the Middle East, particularly Syria.
Many blame major European powers for the exodus, saying their policies have led to a surge in terrorism and war in the violence-hit regions, forcing more people out of their homes.
