Angela Merkel’s Faded Legacy | Opinion

After the September 26 elections, Angela Merkel he will finally leave the German government. During her nearly 16-year tenure, Merkel determined the course of German politics with virtually no resistance regarding the general direction of your government. Even so, the Chancellor had to react to complex situations, such as the 2008 financial crisis, the 2015 migration crisis and the pandemic by the coronavirus since 2020. How to conceptualize Merkel’s legacy? In the following lines, we present a brief review of his vast government, from November 2005 to the present day. But first, an essential clarification.

Unlike Argentina, in Germany the “country model” is not contested. The main political forces do not show substantial differences in the economic, political and social orientation of the nation. This tacit agreement between the main political forces responds to the continued hegemony of the “Country model” imposed by the ruling classes. In this context, politics as such does not determine the thick line of German society but rather its thin line. Merkel’s government and its legacy emerge in this context.

Now let’s start the balance. On the economic front, the German economy presented a moderate but stable growth. However, the poverty has increased dramatically and inequalities even more. Unemployment has fallen dramatically, but this drop has been accompanied by an accelerated process of job insecurity through the proliferation of unwanted contracts, the dizzying increase in outsourcing and the massive substitution of employees by self-employed. Privatizations, industry relocation German to Eastern Europe and financialization was a hallmark of the economy under Merkel’s government.

In matters of foreign policy, Merkel unconditionally accompanied the decisions of the United States, which has repeatedly generated embarrassing situations for Germany. The astonishment of German officials at the startling news of the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan is an example of such situations. During the crisis of Greek debt, in 2010, Merkel determined the imposition of draconian conditions on Greece in exchange for financial aid from the “troika” (EU, ECB and IMF). As a result of these conditions, the Greek economy has been mired in stagnation for more than 10 years and its public debt, instead of falling, has seen a terrifying rise. Merkel’s credit is her decision, against all odds, for the European Union to take in 1.5 million refugees wars in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan between 2015 and 2016. Ironically, this decision, arguably his government’s most progressive foreign policy move, drew endless criticism of his leadership and determined the beginning of its decline Politics.

In terms of domestic policy, the Merkel government was characterized by conservatism and moderation. Just during his last term, In 2017, Germany introduced marriage equality. In fact, when voting on the issue in Parliament, Merkel put forward a vote against the project which was ultimately approved. On gender issues, Merkel has not undertaken any major reforms either. Ditto for the environment. It was not until 2020, due to the pandemic, that Germany achieved the CO2 emissions targets assumed by the government. Finally, Merkel contributed, by act or omission, to the consolidation of an extreme right party in the German political system.

In light of the above, Merkel will leave the government with a faded legacy behind her. Germany appears to be more unjust, more unequal and less united today than 16 years ago. In the face of this, rather than deliberating on Merkel’s legacy, we should deliberate on the reasons for her staying in power for so long.

Ezequiel Luis Bistoletti is an Argentine professor at Alice Salomon University in Berlin, Germany, and facilitator of the “Demolishing Myths in Politics” program.