IMMIGRATION | 30.08.2010

Central banker stirs up a storm with controversial book release

Sarrazin took no backward step at the book launch

High-profile banker and Social Democrat, Thilo Sarrazin, has inflamed passions and otherwise created quite a stir with his new book on the ills of German society, which went on sale this Monday.

Sarrazin, a member of the German Central Bank's executive board and a card-carrying Social Democrat, officially launched his book "Deutschland schafft sich ab" ("Germany is doing away with itself") at a press conference in Berlin on Monday.

The controversy erupted after excerpts from the book were published in the mass circulation daily Bild last week.

In a series of interviews with Sarrazin last week also included what many construed as racist comments against Muslims and Jews, causing a storm of controversy.

Sarrazin on Monday repeated his comments on the genes of Jews and Basques. He said "studies show that there are common genetic roots among Jews living today. That is a fact."

He added that this was not to be construed as either positive or negative. He also said Muslims were a drain on European society due to their lower intelligence.

Sarrazin defended himself at the book presentation, saying there was "no value judgement connected with this. It is not a racist statement."

Sarrazin reiterated his beliefs about the threat of Muslim culture to European societies. He told reporters that Germans were in danger of becoming "strangers in their own country" and demanded stronger checks on immigration.

"All political smallmindedness consists of concealing and glossing over what is," he said.

International attention

What began as a slow-boil domestic controversy has since turned into a full-blown uproar, drawing the attention of journalists from further afield.

Camera teams from Turkey and Arab countries arrived in Berlin for the book launch, while newspapers and broadcasters in France, Israel and Britain began commenting on the story.

The increased attention has led the central bank to schedule a meeting with Sarrazin to decide his future after Chancellor Angela Merkel said his remarks were damaging to the reputation of Germany and the bank.

The former Berlin finance senator also said his ideas should be viewed separately from his current role at the central bank, and hit back at the criticism from Chancellor Merkel, questioning whether she even had time to read every page of his book.

SPD moves to expel Sarrazin

Meanwhile, Sarrazin's political party, the Social Democrats (SPD), on Monday said would begin proceedings for the expulsion of their longstanding member over the comments in his new book.

"There is no place for these ideas in the SPD," Ralf Stegner, the SPD chairman in the state of Schleswig-Holstein, told the daily newspaper Tageszeitung. "It would be better if he would resign himself, but I fear that he won't do this."

Sarrazin vowed to fight on while presenting the book. "I am in a people's party and I will stay in a people's party, because I believe that these issues belong in a people's party," he said. He also invited anyone and everyone "to find discrepancies in my analysis."

Protesters called on Sarrazin to "shut up"

At least 150 people gathered outside of the building where the press conference was being held to protest against the book launch.

Author and sociologist Necla Kelek spoke before Sarrazin, defending him, and calling for the book's issues to be discussed openly.

On Monday, the Westdeutsche Zeitung newspaper wrote in an editorial that "even if most enlightened citizens think his comments are politically incorrect, we should not put a positive spin on the problems: There is a lot going wrong with integration in Germany."

Advance orders have already sent the book to the top of the German bestseller list.

Author: Thomas Sheldrick, Gregg Benzow (dpa/AFP/Reuters)
Editor: Chuck Penfold

dw