No wonder voters seem apathetic: Germany's political elite has shied away from answering key questions about the the future
It has been a hot summer in Germany. It appears that temperatures have been too high for a heated election campaign. The debates have been sluggish and drawn out. And even if the major TV duels are yet to be fought: what are the issues that will jolt the Germans from their summer lethargy and make them flock to the polling stations?
Arguments over equitable taxation or the merits of the state and its institutions have been exchanged for ages. Likewise, the price of abandoning nuclear power and achieving the energy transition is perceived as a permanent topic. So far, none of these disputes have really hit home. Nothing has truly gripped the public and sparked the kind of debate that captivates the mind beyond the evening news and comment pages.
The only issue to defy the general weariness is the discussion about civil liberties and democracy triggered by whistleblower Edward Snowden's actions. Of course, the runup to an election is not a time that would allow for an objective investigation of programmes such as Prism or Tempora. But the debate on secret services, surveillance and civil rights should indeed be pursued – now more than ever.
No other country in the European Union has benefited more in terms of its democratic development from being firmly rooted in the EU than Germany. When, if not now, is the time to defend the shared values that allowed this country to evolve after 1945, and again since 1989? If the European commitment to freedom, democracy and justice is to carry any weight, the debate about data privacy and civil rights must be a central campaign issue.
The word from Berlin is that the German public remains largely unmoved. But voters are left indifferent because the debate has been absurdly reduced to the question of whether Merkel or the SPD's Frank-Walter Steinmeier (who was previous in charge of foreign affairs) knew more or less about the collaboration between the NSA and the German intelligence agency BND, and acquiesced in it. If you want to engage the citizenry, then the real argument is about how we can meet Snowden's request for asylum in a democratic country.
Engaging the people means contesting some of the alarming approaches adopted by western security policy since 9/11. Getting the people involved means defending the European way, which is not anti-American, but seeks to realign the relationship between liberty and security. The prerequisite for this, however, is that we place greater belief in, and demand more of, our common European way.
Is standing up for European values too great a risk in Germany, nearly 25 years after reunification? In Brussels, necessary decisions have been put off for quite some time. As the date of the German election draws nearer, the more openly it is admitted that nothing will happen before the end of September.
Many Europeans were expecting the German campaign season to spawn precisely those heated debates on EU policy. They do not want philosophical musings, but clear answers: what will happen in Greece? What can we learn from the failure of a strategy that relied solely on austerity measures? How can Europeans escape the debt trap? How will we correct the design flaws of the euro? How must a banking union be constructed to safeguard states and citizens against repeated bankruptcy through speculation and other shady dealings? How can we achieve economic recovery and the long-term renewal of Europe's industries? How will we make good on the European promise of a better life in the face of growing poverty and unemployment, particularly in the union's southern and eastern regions?
These are vital questions – for Germany and for Europe. There has been a tendency to steer clear of these questions in this federal election campaign. Germany's political elite is given to a certain fear of the electorate whenever the EU crops up as an issue. Yet it is the same elite that has long neglected to explain to the public how valuable the EU is for us in every way, and has instead never missed an opportunity to proclaim that the community is costing us too much. That is why Germany again lacks an impassioned debate about the rights and wrongs of the future European path.
As a German European, I am disappointed by the mixture of incapability and carelessness back home. After all, in today's EU a lot, albeit not everything, depends on Germany. And Germany itself has enjoyed great economic success over the past 50 years, thanks to debt cancellation, the Marshall plan, German reunification and above all, thanks to Europe. The existence of the European Union has also allowed German society to evolve and has made the country one of the most popular destinations.
The debate about our shared European future is an existential one. It requires passion and attractive ideas. That would be good for the German electoral campaign – and for the reputation of German politics in Europe.
• Translated by Jan K Schwing
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