Germany 19452009 II: The Berlin Republic 90

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Germany 1945-2009 II The Berlin Republic (90-)
Lecture 12
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The Communist Germany

• By 1947 Germany not longer a single unit,
  preparations for foundation of two states
• Soviet structures built in East Germany, fusion
  of SPD and KPD enforced
• Russian high command closely involved
• GDR formally established on October 7 1949
• Russians brought cadre of exiled German
  communists with them (Stalinist purgings)
• Imitation of soviet structure, but adaptations to
  German situation

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The Communist Germany II

• Several phases (Ulbricht, Honecker)
• 45-52
• Uprising in 53, New Course after Stalins death
  but Ulbricht still at large
• Honecker takes over in 1971reform
• Stagnation in the 1980s
• Enormous growth of secret service after 53
  uprising
• Marxims-Leninism a far cry from original Marxism
• Crucial role of Cadre party, Democratic
  Centralism
• No substantial changes in party leadership since
  early 1970s, leaders out of touch

Extraordinary circumstances require
extraordinary measures
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The Communist Germany III

• GDR a Peoples republic
• centralised after 1952
• Formally, parliament, government etc. existed,
  but ...
• all structures oft the state linked/permeated
  with/by party structures
• Formally, a lot of (grass-root) democracy
  (soviets), but
• undermined by Democratic Centralism
• High level of social protection big factories as
  focal points of society

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The Breakdown of Communist Rule

• High degree of repression, only small dissident
  groups
• Change in the USSR, dissidents uncover fraud in
  local elections in spring 1989
• In summer 89, east German holiday makers in
  Hungary and Czechoslovakia storm west German
  embassies ? Hungary opens its border
• New parties, mass demonstrations in October, SED
  willing to use force, but USSR gives no support
• Powershift within SED, on November 9, the border
  is open

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The Breakdown of Communist Rule II

• West German government had no plans for
  unification
• SED and leaders of opposition in favour of
  Democratic Socialism two Germanys
• But public mood shifts Wir sind das Volk ? Wir
  sind ein Volk
• West German government cautious 10 points for
  setting up a confederation in late November
• US encourage West German government to pursue
  swift unification
• In January 1990, the two German governments enter
  negotiations regarding unification

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The road to unification

• Further acceleration after March election
• Treaty on Economic, Monetary and Social Union
  signed in May 1990 (came into force in July)
• GDR Mark replaced by Deutschmark, basically at a
  11 ratio
• Applied to wages, pensions, scholarships etc.
• Complete and immediate integration of the GDR
  into the western system nationalised firms
  (almost all) given to the Treuhandanstalt for
  swift privatisation
• Eastern Welfare system replaced by social
  insurance institutions of the Bonn republic
• West German laws regarding work relationswelfare
  effective immediately

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The road to unification II

• East German Länder re-established in July
• Einigungsvertrag (negotiated in July/August)
• Some 900 pages, lots of gory details
• GDR joins the FRG (Art. 23)
• Berlin capital
• Unified (enlarged?) FRG successor of the GDR
  (debts)
• Accepted by both parliaments on September 20
• Unification on October 3
• Articles 146 vs. 23
• A state peacefully disposes of itself
• All laws and institutions replaced by those of
  West Germany, all within less than a year
• Very unusual and very different from other
  post-socialist countries

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Why so much haste?

• Narrow and rapidly closing window of opportunity
  (Russia)
• East German elites/intellectuals not
  pro-unification
• West German elites liked their system and faced
  no popular resistance (provided that they
  delivered the goods as fast as possible)
• Massive, unregulated migration from East to West
• Self-interest of the Kohl government

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Consequences for East Germany

• Many institutions (childcare, comprehensive
  schools etc.) esteemed by citizens dismantled
• East German industry grossly incompetitive after
  11 conversion of wages
• De-Industrialisation
• Workforce reduced by some 40 per cent
• Massive reduction of female workforce
• Wages approaching Western levels
• Short, artifical boom in early 1990s
• Followed by long stagnation and high
  unemployment(officially up to 20 per cent)
• Population largely protected from economic
  impact, but widespread feelings of
  disenchantment, resentment, inferiority

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Consequences for West Germany

• Many structural problems identified in the 1980s
  not resolved and exacerbated by unification
• Standard of living still high
• Total net transfers to the East somewhere around
  a 1,000 billion Euros (Abschwung West)
• Enormous budget deficit
• Money not invested for future generations
  (education!) but used for (Eastern) consumption
• Contribution-based social insurance systems in
  trouble

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Institutions

• Constitution largely unchanged enlargement of
  territory
• Federal Parliament (Bundestag) enlarged
• Federal government, parliament and council moved
  to Berlin but ... ? institutions even more widely
  spread
• Federal council enlarged (69 votes)
• New coalitions (East vs. West, large vs. small,
  north vs. south, CDU vs. SPD)
• New majorities for constitutional change and
  Zustimmungsgesetze
• Cautious attempts at constitutional reform (1992,
  2006, ?)

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Elections in Germany
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Party System

• (Almost) two separate party systems
• 2 2½ in the West
• Looks much like the late 1980s
• Basically reflects the political conflicts of the
  Bonn Republic
• 3 in the East
• PDS second strongest or strongest in many
  districts (East Berlin!)
• PDS confined to the East from 1990-2005
• Parliamentary groups in 90, 94, 98 (specific
  rules applied)
• Reduced to 2 MPs in 2002
• Conflict over Schröders neoliberal reforms ?
  WASG, provides PDS with a toehold in the West

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Federal Election 2005 Greens
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Federal Election 2005 PDS/WASG
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Germany in 2005

• February 2005 unemployment rate highest in
  German history Pension system not sustainable
• Exploding costs in health care
• Tax system too complex
• Federal system ponderous
• Reformstau (reform logjam)
• Yet world no 1 in exports and biggest economy in
  Europe

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The 2005 Election

• SPD/Greens lost long string of Land elections
  since 1999
• Reforms big issue for the last years
• Government unpopular with voters and parties
• CDU/FDP approaching 2/3 majority in Federal
  Council
• Early Election, parliament dissolved by a staged
  vote of no confidence very unusual
• Voters preferences rather unstable
• Result a puzzle
• CDU/FDP unfeasible
• SPD/Greens unfeasible
• Traffic light or Jamaica coalitions?
• Grand Coalition the outcome almost no one
  (about 15 per cent of the voters) preferred

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PDS and Political Culture

• PDS support based on durable political
  preferences
• Democracy popular in both parts of Germany but
• West Germans lean towards standard liberal
  democracy
• East Germans lean towards democratic socialism
• Preferences for higher level of welfare state
  activity, much greater reliance on the state

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PDS and Political Culture II

• Socialism as a principle
• 56 per cent of East Germans (2002) Socialism a
  good idea in principle (23)
• 31 in favour of large-scale nationalisation
  (10)
• Substantial support for the GDR amongst older,
  highly qualified citizens
• Gender roles
• Working Moms ok 83 vs. 69
• Being a housewife fulfilling 29 vs. 47
• Attitudes/value orientations very stable, will
  probably take one or two generations to close gap
• Distributional conflict
• PDS as an advocate of material Eastern interests
• ¼ of West Germans wants to rebuild the wall

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GDR More positivethan negative aspects
1 Complete Disagreement 3 Neutral 5 Complete
Agreement
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New Cleavages

• Germany now a centrifugal state?
• Social (unemployment the biggest problem
  Schröder would not have won the 2002 election
  without Eastern Germans Stoiber lost in the
  East)
• Economic (demise of industrial sector)
• Political (not always visible as many wessis run
  ossi governments however ossi minister is a
  must on central level, east Länder form cluster
  across party lines, many jokes)
• (Party) politics now much more interesting than
  before 1990
• Unique situation
• Germany different from all other West European
  states
• East Germany different from all other
  post-socialist states

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Germany - too big for Europe but too small for
the world?

• History causes for the German Sonderweg
  (special way)
• Geographical position and the size problem
• Remaining problems welfare state, military
  strategy, foreign policy
• Germany finally a normal state?

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Summary

• An interesting polity in many ways
• If the last 50 minutes were not a totally boring
  experience for you, enrol for the German Politics
  course in your third year!