'Mama Merkel' emerges as unlikely saviour by pursuing shared solutions to Europe's spiralling refugee crisis
German chancellor has defied right-wing forces domestically and throughout EU to pursue shared solution to spiralling refugee crisis
Angela Merkel is seven months old and currently lives in a refugee camp in Hanover, with about 700 other refugees from 33 countries. Her mother, 26-year-old Ghanaian Ophelya Adé, arrived in Germany this year, after crossing the Mediterranean while heavily pregnant.
Asked in an interview with Der Spiegel why she named her daughter after the German chancellor, she said: "I was so grateful, so relieved that Angela Merkel is accepting us, so impressed with what this woman is achieving here."
Heartfelt tributes such as these are not exceptional among the refugee communities stationed on Europe's borders: barely a month after Germany's intransigence over Greek debt saw protesters likening her to Hitler, Merkel is suddenly finding herself at the receiving end of a virtual love-in on social media.
On Facebook, there are pages with titles such as "Mama Merkel, Mother of the Outcasts", and Syrians are sharing images of the chancellor with slogans such as "Wir lieben dich" ("We love you") or "Compassionate mother".
Some posts carry the hashtag #Merkel_TheEthiopian, a reference to the story of Ashama ibn Abjar, a benign Christian ruler who gave shelter to Muslim refugees in the kingdom of Axum (now northern Ethiopia and Eritrea) at the time of Muhammad. Other images are photoshopped to contrast the German politician's compassion with the perceived heartlessness of Arab leaders.