Tough on Crime

The call was contained in a resolution adopted at a meeting of the chancellor's Christian Democrats (CDU) as a debate raged on youth crime ahead of elections in two federal states later this month.

The CDU wants the maximum sentence for young people convicted of serious offences to be increased from 10 to 15 years and a "warning shot" period of detention for those given probation for violent crimes.

Foreigners given a sentence of one year or more would be liable to deportation under the proposals, which also seek the introduction of boot camps where young offenders could be sent for re-education.

Boot camps as a deterrent

Previously, Merkel said she was in favor of boot camps and courts handing brief custodial sentences designed to act as a deterrent to juveniles given probation.

Merkel's remarks, released in advance of publication by the Sunday edition of Bild am Sonntag, followed a much publicized attack by two immigrant youths that put a Munich pensioner in hospital.

"I believe that a brief spell in custody and boot camps are a meaningful addition to our criminal justice system," Merkel said. "They can help young people change their way of thinking at an earlier stage so that they do not end up in prison."

Under German law, courts can place young offenders in special detention centers for up to four weeks followed by probation. In practice, however, such custodial sentences are rare and the youths are able to walk free on probation only.

"A short custodial sentence in addition to probation is better than allowing a person to lapse into becoming a repeat offender and enduring long years in prison," Merkel said.

Hot topic

After the attack in Munich, juvenile delinquency has shot to the top of the German political agenda, with some of Merkel's fellow Christian Democrats calling for a sharp clampdown.

Earlier in the week, Merkel's spokesman, Ulrich Wilhelm, said the government was considering if crime laws had to be toughened. But he said the issues also included improving education and the integration of minorities.

Munich police are holding a 17-year-old Greek national and a 20-year-old Turkish national on attempted-murder charges for kicking and punching a retired school principal, 76, who had asked them to obey a ban on smoking in an underground station on Dec. 20.

Opposing voices

A perception of widespread violence by youths, many of them born in Germany but descended from "guest workers" -- migrants who settled in Germany in the 1960s -- has triggered the debate about ethnic crime.

The most prominent voice was raised by Roland Koch, the state premier of Hesse and member of Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU), ahead of the state elections on Jan. 27.

Koch said last week there were "too many criminal foreigners" in Germany and this week unveiled a six-point plan calling for a crackdown on delinquents, including more detention instead of fines.

Merkel's coalition partner, the Social Democrats, accused Koch of playing the race card in order to gain re-election and said existing laws were sufficient to punish violent offenders.

But the chancellor defended Koch, saying youth crime was a justified election issue because 43 percent of all violent crimes in Germany are committed by people under 21, almost half of whom have immigrant backgrounds.