I. Germany falls into a second patern of development towards democratic government different from that of Great Britain. This pattern is crisis-driven, interrupted development towards democratic government.
a. Germany unified "from above" by Prussia in 1870. The united Germany took on the characteristics of Prussia, a government of soldiers and bureaucrats. Otto Von Bismark led the newly unified Germany making her a world power militarily (which was also a stimulus to industrialization). The government had the facade of democracy without its substance. The Reichstag (parliament) did not control the budget and the chancellor (Bismark) was responsible to the Kaiser (the real holder of power). Bismark laid the foundations of the social welfare state in order to fend off the burgeoning Socialist Party that was gaining strength as Germany industrialized. With the death of Bismark, Kaiser Wilhelm embarked on an arms race and naval race with England, supported the Boers vs. England in South Africa and sought to project German power. Eventually, this contributed to World War I.
b. Germany lost millions of men in the war and suffered the humiliation of an onerous peace. The Versailles peace treaty required more than 30 billion dollars of reparations from Germany and imposed a parliamentary democracy onto a country that had no real experience with democracy. This democratic government, known as the Weimer Republic, was not supported by the majority of the German people and produced 26 governments in 14 years (1919-1933).
Weimer Germany- The instability of the Weimer period was a product of:
In the 1933, elections, Hitler and the National Socialist Party got the most votes and was named chancellor by then President Hindenberg. Hitler was a pseudo-socialist who used Jews as scapegoats that he blamed for all of Germany's ills. Socialists were internationalists, Hitler was a nationalist; Hitler was a Darwinian racist, socialists believe in equality; Hitler believed in the leadership principle while socialists believed in collective rule. He engaged in militarist expansion with the resulting rearmament leading to an economic turn around for Germany. Six million Jews and another six million non-Jews were killed by the Nazis in genocidal campaigns. Germany was defeated at the cost of more than 22 million dead Russian citizens without whose sacrifice the defeat of nazism would not have benn possible.
The War settlement-
To check the soviet satellite, the western allies agreed to the creation of West Germany as a federal republic in 1949. They promulgated the Basic Law of 1949 which was to serve as Germany's Constitution until such time as Germany was reunited. The Basic Law was designed to correct the sources of instability that led to both the demise of the Weimer Republic and to the rise of Adolph Hitler. These features were:
1. A federal system to decentralize power;
2. The constructive vote of no confidence requiring agreement on a chancellor before an incumbent chancellor could be replaced.
3. The rule requiring parties to get 5% of the vote in elections to the Bundestag or 3 seats from the single candidate races.
4. A Federal constitutional court with the power of judicial review.
5. Elections that are mostly indirect except for the individual seats to the Bundestag. The upper house, the Bundesrat, would be elected by the Lander or states and would be able to exercise veto power in those legislative matters pertaining to states.
Here are some generalizations about the federal Republic of Germany that are important to know (1949-1990).
a. Most Germans did not support this government in the late 1940's and early 1950's. It won over the support of the people because of its economic success (the German economic miracle).
b. The economic miracle was due to the fact that most larger German industries survived the War and Germany had plenty of scientific and technical know-how. No reparations were imposed and, in fact, Germany got some aid through the Marshall Plan.
c. Strong Chancellors such as Conrad Adenauer, an agreement by both major parties to focus on keeping inflation low, low military costs all helped Germany material progress and stability.
d. The Christian Democrats governed through the mid-1960's, then the social Democrats exercised power from the mid-1960's through 1983 at which time the Christian Democrats reassumed control of the government until 1998. The C. Dems. represented the smaller towns, Catholics, industrialists, and took a tougher position towards East Germany and the USSR. The Social Dems. represented labor, were stronger in the Protestant North, supported a greater social welfare state, and favored detente or accomodation with East Germany and the USSR. In the late 1950's, the Social Democrats renounced Marxism and became a moderate social democratic party. A smaller third party, the Free Democratic Party or FDP garnered about 10% of the vote during this period and served as coalition-maker by aligning with one or the other two parties giving them the majority to form a government.
e. Germany had low unemployment and inflation, had a labor shortage, and provided extensive social welfare benefits to its citizens paid out of a social welfare fund. Social welfare came to consume about one-their of its Gross Domestic Product. Workers sat of corporate boards of directors (co-determination). Powerful interests were routinely consulted by governments in a form of corporatism that some labelled Germany Inc. Germany was and is a social market economy that combines a strong emphasis on social welfare (supported by the major parties) with market economics. Individual had and have rights but within the context of being members of a society and of a larger community.
f. By the mid 1980's, the coming to power of Gorbachev in the USSR was to have profound implications for Germany. Gorbachev renounced the Brezhnev doctring and allowed each socialist country to pursue its own path to socialism. This eventually led to liberalized communist regimes in Hungary and Poland that, in turn, led to pressures for liberalization in East Germany. When Hungary allowed East Germans to travel to West Germany through its territory, pressures for liberalization in East Germany increased. Erik Honecher, the last old line communist ruler of East Germany, ordered troops to shoot street demonstrators. The soviets concluded he had to be removed from power. More moderate leaders (Egor Krenz and Hans Modrow) sought to create a liberalized communist regime in East Germany. but it was too late. They were forced to call for elections that were held on March 18, 1990.
g. These elections led to a victory for the Christian Democrats in East Germany (41% of vote). The old communist party, now called the Party of Democratic Socialism garnered 16% of the vote. Since the C. Dems. had campaigned for reunification, the outcome of the vote signaled the beginning of that process. After providing guaratntees to the Western allies that Germany would not become a nuclear power, that it would limit its borders to the Oder-Neisse River, that soviet troops could remain until 1995, and providing some $7billion to resettle soviet troops in Russia, the allies renounced occupation rights in Germany. The reunification was consumated on October 3, 1990 after the East German government formally petitioned to be incorporated into the Federal Republic of Germany under the Basic Law of 1949. Six new Lander or states were created out of the former East Germany.
Problems Following Reunification-
a. Costs of about 100 billion dollars per year or around 5% of GDP per year. East Germany had unemployment rates of 22% and was technologically backward. Huge environmental pollution was a serious problem.
b. East Germany had developed its own particular culture more statist. Over time resentments developed over isue such as replacement of Easterns with Westerners in government serivices; over the percieved arrogance of the westerners who viewed the easterners as arrogant; over western perceptions of easterners as indolent; over differences in the laws governing such things as abortion. These tensions persist and are documented in an article titled "The Changing Face of Berlin," that appears in the World Policy Journal, Fall 1998.
c. Tensions have developed over issues such as the right of asylum. Berlin alone has 170,000 persons of Turkish origin living there and they are victims of prejudice. Some have been there many years but they cannot become citizens because German law requires blood lineage for citizenship. The procedures for citizenship through naturalization are hard to complete and few become naturalized. Right wing parties have sought to exploit the issue of foreigners in Germany aided by high rates of unemployment and a growing scarcity of jobs.
d. The unemployment issue proved decisive in the Sept. 27, 1998 elections that led to the defeat of Helmut Kohl (who held power since 1983). Some 85% of the respondants in polls indicated that employment was the major factor determining their vote. New Chancellor Gerhard Stroeder will have to create a governing coalition that can maintain support over the long term that is needed to resolve these problems. Whether a Red-Green coalition will prove viable, only the future can tell.