Germany's Green Party wrapped up its congress in the eastern city of Leipzig on Sunday, vowing to demand a new EU-wide asylum system during next May's European elections.

"The right to asylum is not negotiable," proclaims the party's European program, and urges a common European law that allows labor migration from outside the bloc.

The manifesto calls for all applicants to be offered a fair asylum procedure, where they are registered at the EU's external borders, have their applications processed in a timely manner, and are then fairly distributed among member states.

Currently, delays in registering and processing asylum claims are partly responsible for migrants traveling to other EU countries, where they live under the radar.

Despite opposition from some delegates, the party agreed on a controversial statement that "not all who come can stay," referring to growing public demand for EU states to speed up the return home of failed asylum seekers.

Lobbying for new green taxes

Through their climate policy, the Greens vowed to increase taxes on those corporations that emit the most greenhouse gases. The manifesto demands a minimum carbon dioxide (CO2) levy for power and industrial plants across Europe.

A pledge to push for an EU-wide tax on disposable plastics was also adopted. The party manifesto said such a levy would provide an incentive to reduce packaging waste by making raw materials more expensive.

The Greens also agreed that corporations should be taxed more consistently in light of several scandals where it was revealed that multinationals pay little to no tax in EU states. The party manifesto calls for a single European corporation tax, as well as a digital tax for tech giants such as Facebook and Google.

Read more: How green are Germany's Greens?

The party also wants the EU to become a "guarantor of social rights," that would be enforceable before the European Court of Justice.

Help for small farmers

Small farms and organic farmers should benefit better from European support, the party manifesto declares.

On Saturday, the Greens picked two familiar faces to be the party's top candidates for the European polls, slated to take place from May 23 to 26. MEPs Ska Keller and Sven Giegold will lead the party into the election campaign.

Police, meanwhile, said they were hunting five people who allegedly caused damage and abused delegates at the Green congress on Saturday night.

A party spokesman said the suspects waited outside the conference site and that they were "young Nazis" shouting "Heil Hitler."

Germany's Greens are the most popular environment-led party in the world, and are currently showing second only to Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives in opinion polls in Germany. The party currently holds 11 seats of Germany's 96 seats in the European Parliament.

Candidates for European Commission president Manfred Weber (EPP) The center-right European People's Party (EPP) — the largest faction in the European Parliament — has picked Manfred Weber, its German parliamentary party leader. He has the backing of Chancellor Angela Merkel. Though considered the front-runner, Weber is little known on the international stage, and his language skills are considered poor.

Candidates for European Commission president Frans Timmermans (S&D) Frans Timmermans, the European Commission's first vice president, will lead the campaign for the Progressive Alliance of Socialists & Democrats (S&D). Weber's main rival promises to bring the bloc closer to ordinary voters at a time when Britain's looming exit is one factor behind the nationalist movements across the EU.

Candidates for European Commission president Margrethe Vestager (ALDE) Margrethe Vestager, 51, is one of seven lead candidates for the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats. As the current EU commissioner for competition, the Danish MEP has taken on corporations like Apple, Amazon and Google parent Alphabet. It's also been said that she served as the inspiration for the main character in Borgen , a Danish series where a woman becomes Denmark's first female leader.

Candidates for European Commission president Jan Zahradil (ECR) The third-largest group in the EU Parliament, the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR), has just one candidate: Jan Zahradil, chairman of the Czech ECR delegation. Zahradil, 65, is affectionately known as "Forrest Gump" for cycling from Prague to Strasbourg for a session of the European Parliament and for once running 1,300 kilometers (about 800 miles) across the Czech Republic for charity.

Candidates for European Commission president Ska Keller (Greens/EFA) The Greens/EFA is the seventh largest group in European Parliament, so the German is a long shot to become European Commission president. The Greens have proposed a job share, with two candidates serving for two-and-a-half years each. The most favorite to join Keller is Dutch lawmaker Bas Eickhout.

Candidates for European Commission president Violeta Tomic and Nico Cue (GUE/NGL) The EU's left-wing groups will be headed by Spanish trade unionist Nico Cue and Violeta Tomic (at left). Tomic is a deputy in Slovenia's National Assembly, best known as a TV presenter and actress. She entered into politics in 2014 and has been an advocate for LGBT rights and stronger citizens' rights in Europe. Cue grew up in Belgium after his family was forced to flee Franco's Soain. Author: Keith Walker



mm/jm (DPA, EFD)

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