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The declaration of the government of the chancellor on the renewed partial closure turns into a violent exchange of blows. Boos from the AfD interrupt Merkel’s speech. The Chancellor warns against “lies and misinformation.” There is also harsh criticism from the FDP, the leader of the union faction Brinkhaus reacts with passion.
Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government statement was repeatedly interrupted by violent boos from the ranks of the AfD parliamentary group. The President of the Bundestag, Wolfgang Schäuble, had to interrupt after a few minutes, but was interrupted by the interlocutors themselves.
“If you interrupt the president, you will immediately receive calls to order, it is dangerous,” Schäuble warned. “Our country, as well as the whole world and Europe in particular, are in an extraordinarily difficult situation,” said the CDU politician and asked to listen.
Merkel said in her speech: “Lies and misinformation, conspiracies and hatred are not only damaging the democratic debate, but also the fight against the virus.” She defended the partial shutdown that went into effect Monday as appropriate and necessary. AfD opposition leader Alexander Gauland accused Merkel of “war propaganda”.
Merkel: minimize private contacts
“The number of cases treated in intensive care has doubled in the last ten days,” Merkel said. “This dynamic will overwhelm our intensive care medicine in a few weeks.” And also: “We are in a dramatic situation at the beginning of the cold season.”
Merkel called for private contacts to be kept to an absolute minimum overall. “We have decided, in addition to the rest of economic life, to do everything possible to maintain the nurseries and schools,” he said. He promised the federal government’s support to companies affected by the partial closure. Merkel said: “I understand the frustration, especially the desperation in these areas.”
“Winter will end”
The Chancellor admitted that the measures “demanded a lot from the citizens.” And: “They find us at the center of our human interaction.” Criticism and debate of the corona measures adopted are important for democracy. However, everyone must get involved in the fight against the pandemic. “The pandemic makes it clearer than ever: we are part of the whole,” Merkel said. “Freedom is not ‘everyone does what they want’. Right now, freedom is the responsibility of oneself, one’s family, colleagues and the country.”
“Winter will be difficult, but it will end,” said the chancellor. He wanted to “expressly thank the citizens again.” The fact that most of them behaved responsibly “impressed and deeply moved me.”
Gauland, on the other hand, denied the appropriateness of the federal government’s crown policy. He likened the pandemic to road traffic fatalities, the number of which will be reduced not by abolishing car traffic, but by introducing sensible rules. The federal government is ruining the German middle class and restricting basic freedoms unnecessarily.
Lindner: “It must be the last lock”
The leader of the FDP, Christian Lindner, criticized the fact that the measures have been taken exclusively by the federal and state governments. They threatened to “ruin our parliamentary democracy.” Lindner demanded: “The debate must take place before the decision.” And furthermore: “Unfortunately, the pandemic has become part of daily life and the emergency has become normal, so the debate belongs once again to parliaments.”
Lindner criticized the fact that companies and organizers were now left alone with their expensive hygiene concepts, although its effect had not been disproved. Instead, people would be pushed into an uncontrolled private life. “The absurd requirements have diverted family vacations from Rügen to Rhodes,” Linder said, cautioning that the predictability of government action should not be continually questioned.
The president of the FDP asked the federal government about the prospect of the measures: “Will the third wave threaten the third blockade in January?” The country must change to a sustainable strategy. “Even if this block is milder than the first, it must have been the last.”
Brinkhaus gets loud
The leader of the parliamentary union group Ralph Brinkhaus harshly attacked Lindner: Accusing the federal government of actionism “is unworthy of a liberal.” And: “Your predecessors would have been ashamed of it.” He shouted in a shaky voice: “I am proud of this country and I am proud of what is being achieved here.”
Brinkhaus spoke aloud about the comments from the plenary. Brinkhaus recalled that the FDP parliamentary group requested in the summer that the Bundestag determine that the pandemic was no longer a national emergency. “It is good that we did not listen to you,” he shouted: “Yesterday’s resolutions are clear, united and brave.” They are “sadly necessary, they are tough, they are appropriate.”
The leader of the left-wing parliamentary group, Amira Mohamed Ali, said it was “right to cut back on private contacts.” However, certain prohibitions such as outdoor sports are incomprehensible. “I think Parliament should have decided that,” said Mohamed Ali. This is important for acceptance, regardless of legal issues. Social difficulties are not sufficiently cushioned by the federal government. “We requested in the spring that the reduced-time work allowance be increased to 90 percent, in the low-wage area to 100,” said Mohamed Ali. This aid would have increased purchasing power and therefore would have helped the economy.
