A touching farewell, with tears in my eyes

Germany's Green Party is changing its leadership this weekend and hopes to appoint Robert Habeck as its candidate for chancellor. The first night was more exciting than expected.

Katarina Schuler/Times Online

Ricarda Long seems to be in a good mood. She stood at a bar table at the Rhein-Main conference center in Wiesbaden, holding a glass of champagne, shortly before the Green Party conference started on Friday afternoon. “There is a bit of melancholy,” said the current leader of Germany's Green party, who said the bill would be passed this weekend. But she also seemed relieved. Now she appears to be quite at peace with herself and her decision to give up the party leadership. She said she and co-chairman Omid Nouripour realized in late September that they did not currently have a strategy to lead the party out of the crisis, following a series of electoral defeats this year. There comes a point where she doesn't want to talk about it anymore.

Now someone else must do the same. The Greens are holding a three-day conference in Wiesbaden this weekend to elect a new party executive and choose a candidate for chancellor. There were initially fears that the party conference would see a heated debate about Green Party policies within the government. After all, the party has had to make difficult concessions at traffic lights many times, especially on core issues such as climate policy and asylum policy. Unlike in the first year of the Traffic Light Alliance, anger against it is no longer offset by consistently high poll numbers. The Green Party's support now is not over 20%, but between 10% and 11%.

However, the interruption of the traffic light changed the omen of the meeting. At least that's the hope of top Green Party politicians. During his first brief appearance on the party conference stage on Friday evening as part of the motion discussion, Robert Habeck asked how the conference would have gone if the government had not collapsed. “We may debate the red lines and guidelines of government policy.” However, Habeck stressed that the situation can now be salvaged. Instead, he called on delegates to use the next three days to discuss the next three months leading up to a snap federal election. It is crucial to orient the country and understand what is happening in the world.

Habaek paints a dramatic picture

Habeck paints a dramatic picture of authoritarian regimes organizing attacks on liberal institutions, using hybrid warfare and media where no one knows what is truth and what is a lie. In this case, the party must be clear and must give an answer that others have not given: no more nationalism, but a true democracy committed to European democracy, and this is the Green position. “This understanding can be found in the halls,” Habeck implored the delegates.

Habeck will be supported tonight by his former rival Annalena Beerbock. The relationship between the two was considered chronically strained after Berbock's victory in the race for prime minister three years ago. Meanwhile, the two are said to have reconciled, according to party sources. Berbock already announced in July that he would not run for prime minister this time. Instead, she has now pledged her full support to Habaek. Party insiders say the motion to formally elect Habeck – although the term “prime ministerial candidate” is more popular given current poll numbers – talks about the top duo of Habeck and Berbock, which The facts do not contradict this. Berbock certainly doesn't want to compete with Habeck again; instead, Habeck is part of a top duo in 2021.

Robert Habeck.Image: trapezoid

Berbock's appearance tonight is all the more important because she is putting forward the emergency motion under which the party leadership responds to the situation and has already outlined its electoral plans. She used the opportunity — similar to Habeck — to call representatives to account. She said some may have thought that after the traffic lights were broken they could now take a break from the tough day-to-day grind of government during the campaign and once again represent the Greens' position in its purest form. But that's not the case. “We're far from done, and now we're doubling down on finding solutions that others don't have the power to do,” she asked rhetorically. Berbock showed understanding for everyone in her party who, for example, suffered from the asylum compromise she also negotiated. But she urged not to be “triggered” by word limits in such cases in future. Human nature and order are one.

unusual support

The Greens will also receive support tonight from an unusual source. Party leader Omid Nouripour invited former Munich Security Conference Chairman Wolfgang Ischinger to speak at the farewell ceremony. He says many of the things that don't work well today can be attributed to our need to keep changing. He appealed to the delegates: “The only party in the past 30 years that has not only focused on changing itself, but on changing the country is you, the Green Party.” Especially on issues of war and peace, the Green Party has gone further than any other party. further. “Happiness,” Isinger said. The Greens are the party you can always count on when deciding whether to continue supporting Ukraine.

If a Great Peace breaks out in the ensuing debate, the Greens will cease to be the Greens. Of course, some representatives did not want to abandon their fundamental criticism of government policy just because the traffic lights were interrupted. “People in the climate movement have turned their backs on us,” criticized Pankow’s Sasha Krieger. “It's also fatal to social cohesion.” The Greens have always prided themselves on their values-based politics. But values ​​also have limits. Contrary to what Habeck wanted to pretend, this party meeting was actually about drawing red lines for future government involvement, such as asylum policy.

Sonja Völker from KV Münster also criticized deportations to war zones. People should not give in to current politics as the Greens seek. “We must not allow ourselves to continue to be driven by right-wing populism.” Green Youth Federation spokesperson Jette Nietzard also criticized the traffic light compromise and called on her party to be clear on issues of justice. After all, a wealth tax and greater burdens on the wealthy were already in the plans for the last election. “Be brave,” she called on her party.

But overall, the critical and supportive contributions are fairly balanced. Environment Minister Steffi Lemke Habeck, for example, pledged support to the left wing of the party. She said that contrary to media reports, the left had no intention of blocking Habeck's candidacy for prime minister. Instead, he wants to be part of the solution.

In the end, the deputies passed the Federal Executive Council’s “Responsibility of Our Times” motion by a majority vote. However, a large number of the bill's 147 amendments were included. For example, representatives could make promises to phase out coal by 2030, placing a greater burden on the rich, or reaffirm supply chain laws, the latter of which Habeck recently wanted to use a chainsaw to oppose.

However, the party leadership still faces another debate the next day and things could get more serious. European politician Rasmus Andresen and others have submitted a motion, currently on the ballot, which among other things calls for a minimum wage of €16 and a wealth tax. Another application is about asylum policy. Green Youth wants the party to generally rule out further tightening of asylum laws.

Then the tears flowed down

It was far more exciting than the substantive debate at the start of the party conference when Nouripour and former federal president Emily Bunin said goodbye. Nuripur said he received a gift from the party that he will always be grateful for. But he also makes no secret that his office also causes him stress. His family sees “how someone pushes their physical and emotional limits every day.” Bunin also found her last stint as federal managing director not an easy one. She said through tears that she was saying goodbye to something that meant so much to her. Bunin served as the party's organizational director for nine years and most recently as political director for three years. There was a lot of criticism of her in particular, saying that she didn't show up enough in public and wasn't present enough. As federal managing director, she also ran the campaign and was therefore largely responsible for this year's defeat.

Bunin spoke honestly about this. “We're resigning not because everything is great, but because we're under unprecedented pressure and we still don't have a recipe for perfection.” Without naming anyone, she also addressed criticism of her appearance, especially during the election. Later in the TV show. “The way these gentlemen’s groups operate politics on election night is not my business,” she said. Many viewers were also surprised that she was the only woman in these rounds. “I think you're right,” Bunin said. Delegates gave her multiple standing ovations, thanking her for her candor.

This article first appeared on Zeit Online. Watson may have changed the title and subtitle. Click here to view the original article.