Kashif Kazmi—an asylum seeker from FATA making his mark in German politics

BERLIN: Kashif Kazmi, an asylum seeker from Parachinar, FATA, waits in front of the stage as the captain, Schulz, enters in the atrium of Berlin’s famous Willy Brandt House. ‘Martin, Martin Martin…’ he chants. Martin Schulz, Angela Merkel’s main political rival in the upcoming elections, greets young socialists with a warm smile. No doubt the leader seemed overwhelmed when every second sentence was rewarded with a roaring applause.

Kashif is the only Pakistani refugee in Germany who has successfully finished internship at the German Bundestag, the country’s national parliament. At the moment he is preparing for a three-year vocational training at head office of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) of Germany—a major party in the country—in Berlin.

After the speech, Kashif moves to the podium to click a selfie with Schulz. "EineSelfiebitte! One selfie please!" Schulz directs a shying glance to the ground and there were lots of selfies!

According to Kashif, Martin Schulz is the new hope of change and social justice in Germany. He is thankful to SPD for a consistent positive stance on refugees and the party’s keenness to work on a reconciliation policy.

Martin Schulz

At SPD’s federal youth wing conference in Berlin, 19-year-old Marvin from Bavaria in southern Germany, is also one of the 10,000 new members. Marvin came to listen to Schulz because he thinks it’s time for a change. ‘Merkel created more social division. On the contrary, Schulz always talk about justice and equality between rich and poor.’ Like other young people, he says he has concerns about his future.

Out of the 1,050 newcomers from Berlin joining the party in a span of four weeks, more than half are under the age of 35. Why is Schulz, a 61-year-old socialist, a hope for many young people? “Younger generation sees uncertainty in job market, and whether they will be able to find a job after graduation,” says Tobias Pietsch, chairperson of Jusos, youth wing of SPD in Friedrischhein – Kreuzberg central districts of Berlin.

The charismatic candidate also calls for better pensions and reforms in unemployment benefits. Nesrin, a Muslim student from the northern city of Bremen, has different reasons to endorse Martin Schulz. Her father is from Lebanon and she thinks people with a migrant background traditionally vote for SPD. Schulz also emphasises on unity rather than populist slogans, she says.

Revival of left-wing social democracy

After the announcement of Martin Schulz’s nomination to the chancellor candidate, recent opinion polls have showed that support for SPD is stable at 32%. Merkel’s centre-right party Christian Democratic Union is leading marginally with 34%. The young socialist Tobias considers this new wave of trust by the German people as ‘revival of left-wing social democracy’.

So far, the sudden rise in support of the SPD appears almost miraculous. As part of Merkel's grand coalition, SPD remained a junior coalition partner and as a result lost touch with even its traditional voters. GEO News Brussels correspondent Khalid Hameed Farooqi understands that SPD's paradigm shift in it basic socialist ideology took place under Schroeder. It eroded party's workers base and plunged the party's popularity to an all-time low of 15%. The Pakistani-European analyst says that ‘there was a leadership crisis’.

Martin Schulz as a former president of the European Parliament is a heavyweight and a centrist on economic issues. He also supported Merkel's refugee policies that created an atmosphere of détente in Germany. Schulz remains forthright against anti European right-wing rhetoric.

Surveys have also suggested that with 10% the third strongest party is the right-wing, populist part AfD (Alternative for Germany). The support certainly points towards a strengthening of the right. This reminds me of a plenary session at the European Parliament in Strasburg, where during the Brexit campaign UK’s populist, right-wing politician Nigel Farage hysterically talked against the European identity and democratic values. Martin Schulz speaking with journalists after the session said: “It is absurd that politicians sitting in the European Parliament are talking about demolishing Europe’s most significant democratic institution.” I saw sorrow and anger in a die-hard socialist leader who has been confronting extreme European right wing for years.

Schulz had his first election posters with the acronym MEGA: Make Europe Great Again, clearly mocking Trump’s well-known political slogan.

Germany is all set to have a head-to-head race on Election Day on September 24 in Germany. Yes, the survey results will not last forever and the opinions on CDU and SPD will fluctuate every other day but Germany has already set an example in Europe. Khalid Farooqi summing it up says: “The far-right pushed the centre-right to adopt right-wing agenda, which made the Left in Europe realise that it can only succeed with support from the masses. The Left needs to serve the masses and prove that it is different than the liberals, centre-right and the far right.”