EU Receives Stark Warning

Following the release of his new book – The Dark Side of Migration – Swiss forensic psychiatrist Frank Urbaniok has called on policymakers shaping Europe's migration policy to finally take into account crime statistics involving migrants. He said that certain migrant groups commit a disproportionately high number of crimes due to cultural factors.

Illustration (Photo: AFP)

The renowned psychiatrist rejected allegations that his book exaggerates the facts and claimed that much of the public discourse surrounding migrant crime is “targeted disinformation” aimed at downplaying uncomfortable truths. “Many fear that the citizens simply won’t be able to cope with the facts,” he said. In several European countries, crime statistics involving foreign nationals are obscured by categorizing already naturalized citizens as, for instance, “German” or “Austrian,” even when they were born abroad or have a history of migration background.

“Too many problematic individuals end up staying here,” Urbaniok said.

I see them in the statistics and in my work every single day for the past thirty years. It’s uncomfortable. What’s truly uncomfortable is the realization that these problems can persist even a generation later. That’s why we cannot say the situation is under control. On the contrary — the problems are enormous,

he warned.

Cover photo : Illustration (Photo: AFP)