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30 years of German Reunification
Today is German Unity Day. Every 3 October, this national holiday commemorates the reunification of Germany in 1990 after more than forty years of separation between the Federal Republic of Germany in the West, and the German Democratic Republic in the East.
The partition of Germany was the first and perhaps longest lasting mark of the rift between Allied countries and the Soviet bloc, and can certainly be said to be one of the most recognizable symbols of the Cold War. This year is also a celebration of thirty years of unity, or so it should be. Yet, a glance at the press coverage of what ought to be a joyous moment points instead to lasting scars.
Unity may have been achieved in name, but the legacy of Soviet control still burdens the Eastern regions of the country: Economic growth is lagging, opposition to Angela Merkel’s mandate is increasing (in 2019, the Alternativ für Deutschland - a eurosceptic and nationalist party often qualified as far-right and extremist- made it a campaign issue that integration and economic restructuring had still not come to East Germany; [In last year’s elections in Brandenburg and Saxony, both of which were behind the Iron Curtain in East Germany, the AfD took 23.5% and 27.5% of the vote, compared to 11% nationally in 2017.]), and many, including in the younger generations, remain unconvinced that the reunification process is over.
There is clearly plenty more to be done, and the German government seems keenly aware of that [The German government acknowledges that there is still work to be done.
“The historically unique challenge of bringing together two long separated parts of a country, was tackled through many projects and measures,” the government said this year in its annual progress report on the state of reunification. “Not all of them proved to be successful and sustainable.”]. Most important among those issues to be addressed is possibly the latent identity crisis in the formerly separated East. [eastern Germans are still underrepresented in leading positions and many still feel left behind as the "losers" of reunification. Even former East Germans who consider themselves "winners" of reunification often feel like their life behind the Iron Curtain has been forgotten in Germany's history books.] Two countries, two systems, transforming into one country, one system, can sometimes feel like one of the two systems, or cultures, is being erased in favor of the other. There is in fact still a perception that there have been winners and losers in reunification. Nonetheless, a majority of both East and West Germans appear to be optimistic about the future of their unity.
Far be it from us to claim German unity is currently failing. If anything, of all of the former Soviet satellite states, East Germany is the most successful one by far, across all metrics. [Financially, the former East Germany is now at the same level of GDP as many French regions, while even Poland—considered a post-Cold War economic success story—is much further behind.] On the whole, German reunification is a striking example for the world of the possibility to move past division and create one of the most stable democracies in Europe. One could even go so far as to call it a blueprint for countries that are similarly parted to this day.
If anything, North and South Korea share a surprisingly similar history with East and West Germany: Post-World War II partition between the ideological East and West, respectively; establishment of -essentially- satellite/carbon-copy-of-the-administering-superpower states on either side of the divide; subsequent cementing of the rift throughout the Cold War. Admittedly, the FRD and the GDR never waged war on one another. Admittedly still, it took the fall of a global superpower to reunite Germany, or close enough a situation as to make no difference.
Much like those who touted the “end of history” while the Soviet Union crumbled [Or those that like to pretend that race relations issues were over as soon as slavery ended] , we can’t make the mistake of assuming such a difficult question has been solved, and easily at that, on the day that East Germany and West Germany stopped existing in favor of just Germany.
In fact, we would do well to remember the lessons that have come from Germany since the fall of the Berlin Wall. Reunification is no easy process, and neither is it swiftly dealt with.
This being said, happy Deutschen Einheit.
Noé Sainderichin
Sources:
After 30 Years, East and West Germans Wonder: How United Are We?
German reunification: Thirty years on, is the job done?
German reunification: Young Germans in search of their eastern roots
German reunification: What still divides East and West?
Germany's Steinmeier warns of 'invisible' walls that threaten social cohesion
Gorbachev Was Right About German Reunification
Three decades later, Europe still awaits the unity heralded by German reunification
Covid all the Time
This week, shortly after the much-discussed Presidential debate, President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump tested positive for Covid-19. The President is currently in Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. Thus far, there have been conflicting accounts on his overall health : in particular, his inactivity on twitter has left a tweet-shaped hole in the national consciousness. As a man in his early 70s with a preexisting condition, the thought that Sars-Cov-2 could pose a real danger to him is plausible.
This is catastrophic for the Trump campaign, putting a halt to all appearances and effectively leaving both the government and the campaign in the hands of Mike Pence, the least talked-about politician of 2020.
But it isn’t just the Trump campaign that ground to a halt. The President’s engagements over the course of the last few weeks, including in the exercise of his political duties but also in the context of his campaign, have brought him into contact with other high-ranking figures within the Republican Party. Chris Christie, the former governor of New Jersey, and Trump’s debate coach, checked into the hospital this afternoon after a positive Covid test.
But even more significantly, two Republican Senators also tested positive : both Mike Lee of Utah and Thomas Tillis of North Carolina tested positive after exposure to Trump. Taken with Ron Johnson’s (Wisconsin) simultaneous contraction of the virus, this leaves the GOP three senators short of their usual number. This in turn jeopardizes their chances at confirming Judge Amy Coney Barrett after her nomination to the Supreme Court : with just fifty votes, a single abstention would be enough to undermine the entire procedure. This is unlikely to last for long (all three senators are in comparatively good health), but it certainly heightens both tension and suspense in what was already a historically hostile election.
It also underlines the insouciance with which the Trump Administration has viewed the Covid pandemic, even when it comes to White House protocols.
Shane McLorrain
Sources:
Trump spends first night at Walter Reed for Covid-19 treatment
Senate GOP's third positive Covid-19 case threatens quick Barrett confirmation
Another US senator tests positive for coronavirus
Macron’s separatism speech and-anti radicalization measures
This week French President Emmanuel Macron announced he would propose a series of measures designed to combat islamic fundamentalism and separatist sentiment in France. These measures will be made explicit in a bill that will be presented to the French legislature in early December.
In a speech delivered on October 2, he explained that they were intended as a response to “a conscious project”, that consists of “repeated behaviour contrary to the values of the Republic, [that] often translates to the creation of a counter-society including deschooling of children, development of segregated sports and cultural activities, indoctrination.”
The objectives of the upcoming bill are clear: Free French Islam from foreign interference and influences, prevent mosques’ administrations from being overthrown from the inside, and put a stop to islamist communitarianism. As such, the measures delineated include mandatory public schooling at an earlier age (3 instead of 6), training imams in France for government issued certificates rather than allowing foreign countries to do so, and other such frameworks designed to give the French government more oversight on the practice of Islam.
While the place of Islam in France has been debated for years, Macron’s record on the topic has been called into question repeatedly, notably by the right and far right opposition for being too lenient. Thus, such a speech coinciding not only with the fallout and investigation of a recent act of terrorism last week, but most of all with the ongoing trial on the January 2015 Charlie Hebdo massacre, is certainly an indication that, short of changing his mind on the topic, President Macron is at the very least showing a strong sense of timing.
Naturally, the speech hasn’t been particularly well received by many on the left. Macron is accused of playing to a right-wing electorate and only announcing short-term plans; for others the measures will be actively detrimental and may lead to further rifts.
France has had a rocky history, to say the least, with many majority-Muslim nations due to its colonial past, most notably as a result of the (understatement of the millenium) difficult separation of Algeria from France - all things that President Macron recognized in his speech.
In the last decade, islamic terrorist threats have emerged from reactions to France’s contemporary geopolitical positions on the international stage (participating in the War in Afghanistan, the intervention in Lybia, ISIL related cells or individuals), or to perceived insults to Islam coming from French policies (head veil ban) or French nationals - the most egregious example of the latter being the Charlie Hebdo massacre in 2015.
Islam has been one of the thorniest and most contentious issues in France, because it crystallises external and internal issues: Foreign interference within mosques is one thing, but radicalisation is often the result of contact with organisations outside of France; on the other hand the muslim population in France - which absolutely can’t be held accountable for a minority of radicals- is stuck between the rock of a history of integration that has slowly degraded with each subsequent generation (economically, socially, and culturally), and the hard place of a very real problem of fundamentalism that exists across the Islamic world.
It’s unlikely that the measures will effectively deal with that anytime soon.
Noé Sainderichin
Sources:
Emmanuel Macron présente son plan contre « le séparatisme islamiste »
Laïcité : comment Macron a imposé le séparatisme dans le débat
Ce qu’il faut retenir du discours d’Emmanuel Macron sur la laïcité et les « séparatismes »
Mosquées, imams… Les propositions de Macron pour un islam « libéré des influences étrangères »
Attaque à Paris : l'assaillant présumé mis en examen pour «tentatives d’assassinats» terroristes
Procès «Charlie» : «Faire la lumière sur qui a commandité ce massacre barbare»
Bling To Seoul
The Korean stock market is about to see its biggest IPO in three years. Big Hit Entertainment, the music label behind boyband BTS, announced its initial public offering for 21% of its stock at the beginning of last month, with a starting value fixed at the highest possible bracket for launch at the Seoul Stock Exchange. This is … hefty, to say the least : with an estimated valuation currently set at $809 million USD for this 21%, the overall value of the company would be around $4 billion USD, or larger than the three largest record labels in South Korea combined..
Furthermore, the members of BTS themselves stand to get a lot richer, with each holding 65k shares : this is enough to catapult all of them to multi-millionaire status.
While this may seem like niche news, it has significant implications in an international context. On the one hand, the company’s sky-high valuation sets a price on Big Hit’s (and by extension, BTS’s) contribution to the South Korean cultural halo, more commonly known as the Korean Wave. Recognized as one of the most innovative companies in the world, Big Hit has created effective new solutions to facilitate online purchases.
However, the most peculiar aspect of Big Hit is its incredibly limited roster. Currently Big Hit only manages two groups, of which BTS is by far the bigger earner. In fact, BTS-related sales accounted for over 95% of Big Hit’s earnings in the first half of 2019 (it has since shrunk to a more modest 88% in 2020). With BTS as the obvious sole source of Big Hit’s success, the entire IPO changes from the recognition of the value of a company to the recognition of the significance of a group.
This in turn begs the question : in such a broad industry what did the seven members of BTS do differently to garner such enormous success?
The answer can be found partially in the group's recent actions. Last week, the group made their second speech at the UN. While this speech is nothing special, it highlights the unique nature of BTS’s international engagement. Unlike many of their competitors, BTS have displayed an unusual amount of political commentary in their music, which features critiques of the constraints placed on youth and has, at times, strayed into implied critique of the South Korean government under Park Geun-hye.
Since the end of Park’s presidency, the group has reinforced both the political aspect of its engagement as well as its attempts to woo an international audience, in particular an American one. Their first speech at the UN emphasised the importance of individuality and choice. They have regularly expressed support for the LGBT+ community. In June, they donated $1 million dollars to Black Lives Matter.
Big Hit’s valuation finally put a price on the engagement that BTS’s actions have garnered ; more importantly, it emphasises that political and personal engagement are a viable model for growth in a notoriously conservative industry.
Shane McLorrain
Sources:
BTS, le boys band le plus populaire au monde, s'apprête à entrer en Bourse
BTS on Its Donation to Black Lives Matter
South Korea’s IPO market set for best year since 2017
BTS' Big Hit Focuses On Sustainable Fandom-based Business Model
BTS backer’s $3.9bn IPO hits wrong note for some analysts
Why Big Hit Entertainment is one of Fast Company's Most Innovative Com