2009-10-28

In Germany the discussion about the interview given by Thilo Sarrazin, a former Berlin SPD Finance Minister and a present member of the Bundesbank board, at the beginning of October is heating up. In the interview Sarrazin criticized Turks and Arabs living in Germany. The initial wave of strong criticism of Sarrazin has now been balanced by voices of support and solidarity. This can mean that there is a growing social permission to express opinions that up to now have been inadmissible in German public discourse.

In the interview published by the elite culture quarterly Lettre International, circulated in six versions in different European countries, Sarrazin said that a huge majority of Arabs and Turks in Germany are unable to integrate and therefore they are not welcome in the country. These remarks provoked fierce criticism from the Bundesbank management, journalists and Sarrazin's fellow SPD party members. Sarrazin was accused of racism, there were demands to throw him out of the party. Axel Weber, president of the Bundesbank, suggested several times in interviews that Sarrazin should hand in his resignation as he had tarnished the reputation of the bank. When his suggestions met with no response, the Bundesbank management took away part of Sarrazin's competences linked with controlling the flow of currency in Germany and left him only tasks of monitoring risks and IT technologies. On October 11 the weekly Bild am Sonntag published results of a survey showing that 51 percent of Germans agree with the remarks made by the member of the Bundesbank board and further surveys claim that support for Sarrazin is still growing. As a consequence, also Christian Democratic politicians and some Social Democrats started defending Sarrazin. Fierce criticism aimed at foreigners and justified by freedom of expression is slowly becoming a fully-fledged element of German political discourse. <ciechan>

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