BERLIN: Chancellor Angela Merkel said refugees who are looking to build a life in Germany should remain open to living in more sparsely populated areas rather than big cities and show a bit of curiosity about German culture.
“We expect that those who come here follow our laws, that they are a little bit curious about our lives,” Merkel said in weekly video podcast released on Saturday.
Germany has taken in more than 1 million migrants and refugees since 2015 and has since grappled with the political and social pressures that come with integrating the new arrivals across the country. Merkel acknowledged that many migrants prefer to live in large cities, but finding accommodation there can often be difficult.
“Therefore I advise to stay in the rural areas ... where it’s may beat first glance a bit unappealing,” Merkel said. “Because often in those places the people can better look after the interests of refugees and integrate them.”
Merkel said that new arrivals to Germany should embrace “the values that this country subsists on: tolerance, openness, religious freedom, freedom of expression.” —DPA
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