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POLITICS

Find Germany’s Obama? Yes we Cem!

An overwhelming majority of Germans might adore US president-elect Barack Obama, but they're unlikely to vote for a comparable politician in their own backyard any time soon, argues The Local's Marc Young.

Find Germany's Obama? Yes we Cem!
Greens leader Cem Özdemir. Photo: DPA

In the wake of America’s historic election earlier this month, there’s been a scramble across Europe to find British, French and German versions of Obama. The president-elect will become the first African American to hold the country’s highest political office.

Commentators on both sides of the Atlantic have talked of the United States becoming the first post-racial western democracy and some have asked whether the same thing could happen in London, Paris or Berlin.

Plenty of minorities are politically active throughout the European Union, but they still face thick glass ceilings making it unlikely there will be an Indian-British prime minister at 10 Downing Street or a Senegalese-French president in the Élysée Palace any time soon.

Germany, sadly, is no different despite marking an important milestone this weekend: Cem Özdemir became the first person of Turkish descent to head a major German political party after being elected as co-leader of the environmentalist Greens on Saturday.

But Özdemir has no illusions about becoming Germany’s very own Obama.

“We have a lot of work to do before one day it no longer matters if someone has ancestors from Kazakhstan, from Anatolia, or whether they fought the Romans in the battle of the Teutoburg Forest,” Özdemir told Süddeutsche Zeitung on Monday. “Germany is still a developing country as far as having an open society goes.”

Of course, the United States is not Europe. Whereas America has always been a land of immigration, most EU nations have accepted foreigners on their shores by default, not design. Britain and France only become multicultural societies in the second half of the 20th century because of their colonial ties. Many Germans still consider their country to be neither multicultural nor a land of immigration, even though the millions of Turks who helped create West Germany’s post-war economic miracle have lived here for decades.

Your average German would probably agree that the Turks and other foreigners have enriched German society, but would he or she vote for a Turk as chancellor?

Cem Özdemir isn’t likely to lead Germany anyway as the head of what is presently the country’s smallest opposition party. But that doesn’t make the question any less valid.

Do Germans consider him an “Anatolian Swabian,” as he jokingly refers to himself, or do they see him and the millions of other people with Turkish roots living in Germany as simply tolerated guests in their country?

If language can offer insight into the collective consciousness of a nation, Germany has quite a way to go before there will be someone named Özdemir or Yilmaz taking up residence in the Chancellery in Berlin.

In the United States Barack Obama is an African American – that is, he’s an American who happens to have African roots. “African” is simply a modifier of his Americanness, just like there are countless other incarnations – such as Asian Americans, Irish Americans, and Italian Americans who are all simply variations of a single nationality.

That’s still not the case in a country like Germany that long clung to the concept of blood over birthright as a qualification for citizenship.

Özdemir this weekend made clear he was a “German of Turkish origin,” but the vast majority of Germans would probably label him a Deutsch-Türke – or a German-Turk. Even though he was born in Germany and carries a German passport, linguistically he remains a Turk who happens to have “German” as a hyphenated adjective to describe his identity.

But Özdemir knows who he is and where he belongs. And that’s an important first step.

TERRORISM

How does Germany warn people about the threat of terrorist attacks?

Following the recent terrorist attack in Moscow, France has shifted onto the highest possible alert level for terrorist threats. Why doesn't Germany use a similar system - and how does it alert people instead?

How does Germany warn people about the threat of terrorist attacks?

Since the brutal terrorist attack on a Berlin Christmas Market back in December 2016, fears of Islamist terror seem to have receded into the background – through far-right terror has remained prevalent.

But the recent terror attack on a concert hall in Moscow, which has been attributed to a branch of IS, has heightened fears of a resurgence of Islamist violence.

In contrast to neighbouring countries, Germany doesn’t use a national terror alert system to ‘grade’ the threat of terror – but it does have another system for protecting its population and warning people. 

Here’s what you need to know about Germany’s approach to tracking threats of terrorism. 

How does Germany manage the threat of terror? 

According to the Interior Ministry, rather than relying on a system of color-coded alert levels, German security authorities take a more decentralised approach.

The Federal Criminal Police Office regularly conducts assessments of terrorist threats, which are then shared with the leaders of the federal states. If there’s a significant increase in the overall risk assessment or a specific threat emerges, the government puts “appropriate security measures” in place, the Interior Ministry states.

Unlike centralised systems in countries like France, where national threat levels are analysed and shared with the public, security responsibilities in Germany are largely decentralised, resting with individual states.

Why doesn’t Germany use terror alert levels?

When it comes to using national terror alerts to alert citizens, the Interior Ministry remains sceptical, arguing that the threat level can vary significantly between regions and even within cities.

According to the Ministry, having uniform alert levels nationwide might give the false impression that the danger is uniform everywhere, which would lead to higher levels of panic and uncertainty among citizens. 

READ ALSO: How prepared is Germany in the event of a military attack?

While alert levels could theoretically serve as a means to reach the population, ARD terrorism expert Michael Götschenberg points out that their effectiveness diminishes over time. People tend to become desensitised to frequent high alert levels, which causes people to ‘switch off’ and ultimately ignore potential threats.

Mourner at Breitscheidplatz in Berlin

A man stands in front of the memorial to the victims of the Islamist terrorist attack on Breitscheidplatz in December 2026. The Christmas Market attack was the last major Islamist attack in Germany. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Christoph Soeder

One of the main factors that renders colour-coded alerts less useful is the fact that “the levels are not linked to specific rules of behaviour for the population”, Götschenberg told Tagesschau.

Austria, for example, raised its alert level last November but emphasised that the public didn’t need to alter their behaviour in any way. This reflects authorities’ belief that the best way to fight terrorism is for the population to show resilience and refuse to give into fear.

How high is the threat of terror attacks in Germany?

In the aftermath of the terrorist attack in Moscow, Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) has described the current threat of Islamist terror as “acute”.

However, the attack has not significantly changed the authorities’ perceptions of the situation. In fact, the threat was defined as acute before the latest attacks and remains so afterwards.

Several other countries, including the UK and the US, have already put out warnings for potential terrorist attacks to citizens who are considering travelling to Germany. In the UK, for example, the government cites recent attacks such as the shootings in Hanau shisha bars back in 2020 and the knife attack in Dresden the same year.

“Terrorists are very likely to try and carry out attacks in Germany,” states the official government advice, which adds that restaurants, markets, shopping centres and places of worship could be chosen for potential attacks. 

So, how will the public be warned if a plans for a specific attack become known? As well as offering general information about terrorist threat levels, the government will also release specifics that it feels are necessary for the public safety.

For example, when the authorities suspected an attack was being planned in the area around Cologne cathedral ahead of Christmas last year, warnings were sent out to residents of the city. 

On Tuesday, Faeser also revealed that she would put additional border controls in place during the European Football Championships in June and July this year. 

READ ALSO: Germany announces border controls for European Football Championship

The focus will be on protecting the country from Islamists, political extremists and other violent criminals during the competition.

“We are keeping an eye on the current threats,” Faeser told the regional Rheinische Post. 

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