GUEST COMMENTARY by Sisaru Chithrasiri
Throughout the course of history, only a few democratically
elected leaders enjoyed approval ratings with a median approval rate of 62%
(Reinhart 2020). In fact, in some European countries such as in The Netherlands
and Finland ‘Mutti’, as she is known in Germany, has enjoyed over 80% approval
ratings (Reinhart 2020). The aim herein is to explore the legacy of Merkalism:
the pragmatic politics of the center-right marked by managing alliances and
eliminating rivals; pro Europeanism – the woman who steered her nation and a
continent through tough times and bona fide her way from hardship to stardom as
Europe’s de- facto leader.
Born Angela Dorothea Kasner, she was raised in the German Democratic Republic,
commonly known as East Germany, by a pastor and his wife, who was a teacher.
She obtained a doctorate in quantum chemistry and worked as a research
scientist prior to her days in politics.
The fall of the Berlin Wall ushered in Merkel’s political career securing a
seat at the Bundestag (Federal German Parliament) in 1990. Elected Chancellor
in 2005, Merkel is the first woman and the first East German to hold her
nation’s highest elective office. As she steps down in 2021, she will be
Germany’s second-longest-serving leader of the modern era, after her former
mentor, Helmut Kohl. Over the years, her critics and supporters made
comparisons between her and Kohl, who led Germany through reunification during
the time after the fall of the Berlin Wall. This writer believes that it is not
a fair comparison to make because the Kohl and Merkel eras share little in common.
Over the past 16 years, Germany and Europe have needed a mediative and flexible
problem-solver to guide the region through a debt emergency (the Euro crisis),
the refugee influx from the Middle East and a once in a century pandemic – none
of which Helmut Kohl had to face. However, this is not to belittle the
achievements of the Kohl era.
Arguably, the Euro crisis was the litmus test for European unity since World
War 2 and in the process, Merkel helped save the European Union – an
achievement that deserves long lasting respect. Convinced that a strong EU is
the only way forward for the European continent, the German Chancellor worked
tirelessly to work for the best deal. Merkel once observed that “if the Euro
fails, then Europe fails”, with that Merkel embarked on an austerity programme
for the indebted countries of Southern Europe, particularly Greece along with
loans and aid programmes for struggling economies of the EU. Furthermore,
Merkel backed the European Central Bank in the purchase of large-scale government
bonds and bringing interest rates down thereby fast tracking the recovery of
the EU economies.
When hundreds of thousands of asylum seekers and refugees knocked on Europe’s
borders following the collapse of the Syrian Arab Republic, Libya and other
sub-Saharan and Sahel region states, Merkel opened Germany’s gates when most of
Europe kept theirs closed. While Merkel received standing ovations from
multilateral organizations and human rights groups, critics say this was a
short-sighted move - gambling with European unity as it fueled tensions with
other EU states such as Hungary, Poland, Austria, Greece, Italy, and Spain. Speaking
to the VOA (2017), Robert Terrel a scholar on modern Germany at the Syracuse
University New York, says Merkel was not cautious enough as this fueled the
rise of populist nationalist parties and sentiments across Europe. He further
goes on to say that this decision in fact divided Germany including Merkel
supporters in the center-right of politics. Other critics accuse Merkel of
encouraging hundreds of thousands of people to make the daunting and perilous
journey through the Mediterranean Sea onto mainland Europe. But for now, in Merkel’s
own words ‘wir schaffen das’ or ‘we will manage this’ remains.
Another field in which the Chancellor exemplified ‘Merkelism’ was in Foreign
Affairs – not to mention that the Euro Crisis and the Middle Eastern refugee
crisis were a crisis of international scale. Nonetheless, it is how Merkel manoeuvered
through the precarious road of foreign affairs which makes her stand out from
other world leaders; The US- China strategic competition, The Trump era,
Russia’s President, and an increasingly nationalist Balkans region. Some
criticize Merkel for making Germany dependent on Russian gas, particularly with
the advent of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline. However, unlike American and
other Western leaders, Merkel maintained a working relationship with President
Putin; enough to secure uninterrupted and cheap gas effectively keeping Germany
warm during winter. Merkel has however not shied away from criticizing Russia
on its poor human rights record, and she convinced the EU to impose sanctions
on Moscow for the annexation of Crimea – all the while being cautious of the
consequences if she steps out of line. All in all, a well-played game.
Towards China, the Chancellor has also taken a pragmatic approach. Merkel was
among the few western leaders to give the green light to the Chinese
telecommunications firms Huawei to build Germany’s 5G infrastructure, subject
to safeguards. The Chancellor also played a key role encouraging EU-China
investment, despite criticism from allies such as the United States. Knowing
all too well that Germany’s automobile industry, which accounts for a mammoth
share of the German economy continues to make profits in mainland China, Merkel
worked tirelessly to have a cordial bilateral relationship with China thereby
benefiting the everyday German worker as well German corporates.
It is an open secret that the Trump era ushered in an
awkward phase of transatlantic relations. Trump was seen as rather undiplomatic
in the way he accused his European counterparts of not contributing enough to
NATO and cozying up to Russia while repeatedly making open remarks on how
Germany is a ‘free rider ‘on American power. Unlike Macron of France, Trudeau
of Canada, and the European Union at large, Merkel managed to navigate her way
through the Trump era relatively better. Understanding the importance of the
transatlantic alliance and the fact that US Presidents come and go but the
alliance does not, Merkel endeavoured to keep it together for the greater good. In the case of Victor Orbán of Hungary and Jarosław Kaczyński of Poland, Merkel
adopted a less hands-on approach. It was, it may be argued, owing to Merkel’s understanding
of the nationalist half of Europe and the liberal half: a compromise for
European unity. Although not ideal, it was a pragmatic approach that kept the
union from further friction.
Dedicated to making space for future generations, Merkel is standing down on
her own terms. Critics are of the opinion that the outgoing Chancellor missed
on important opportunities to, in the words of some critics, ‘tame’ the
nationalist camp both in Germany and across Europe. Nevertheless, in her sixteen
years as Chancellor, Merkel has seen many western counterparts come and go;
four French Presidents, four US Presidents, five British PMs, seven Italian
PMs, eight Japanese PMs and not to mention six Australian PMs. Merkel was able
to manoeuver through tough times not just in Germany but the entire free world
with grace. Her time was seen as liberal, pro-European and reformist thereby
ushering a new era of conservative politics in Germany and Western Europe.
Merkel did not fail to be a role model for reliability, responsibility, and the
impact of female leadership. Thus, it is obvious that whoever succeeds as
Chancellor of Germany will have a massive void to fill.
References
Dettmer, J 2021, What Did Merkel Achieve? viewed 30 September 2021, https://www.voanews.com/a/what-did-merkel-achieve/6225780.html
Nevett,J 2021, Angela Merkel: Four expert verdicts on a contested
legacy, viewed 30 September 2021, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-58570507
Matthijs, M 2021, Merkel’s Legacy and the Future of
Germany, viewed 30 October 2021,< https://www-cfr-org.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/www.cfr.org/in-brief/merkels-legacy-and-future-germany?amp>
Reinhart, RJ 2020, Merkel Set to Leave Office With
Germany on Top of the World, viewed 29 September 2021, https://news.gallup.com/poll/327701/merkel-set-leave-office-germany-top-world.aspx
The Federal Chancellor, Biography – Angela Merkel, viewed 30 September
2021, https://www.bundeskanzlerin.de/bkin-en/angela-merkel/biography
POLITICO, 2021, In Pictures: Angela Merkel’s G7 history, viewed
30 October 2021, https://www.politico.eu/article/angela-merkel-germany-g7-summit-history/
