Chancellor Merkel’s conundrum is no joke
German leader must decide if comedian should be punished for insulting Turkish president
It all started with a joke. Last week, German comedian Jan Boehmermann aired a segment on his show in which he read an openly offensive poem, directed at Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in which he accused him of bestiality and other unsavoury things.
The Turkish politician had previously criticized a much less controversial satirical segment that aired on another German channel. But Boehmermann went too far for Erdogan. The Turkish president officially filed charges against the German comedian on Monday — using a little-known German law.
But it could cost German Chancellor Angela Merkel her job, according to some commentators.
Respected German weekly Der Spiegel argued in its lead story on Tuesday that Merkel, among the most powerful women in the world, “could stumble” over the scandal which started as a laugh. Merkel has survived far worse crises. So why is the Boehmermann controversy so dangerous to her office, according to German media?
Insulting a head of state is a criminal offence in Germany, and it’s up to Merkel to decide if Erdogan’s case can be heard in German courts. And here’s where it gets really complicated.
Merkel and the European Union recently negotiated a refugee deal with Turkey that arguably saved her chancellorship, and — for the moment, at least — massively decreased the influx of refugees and migrants.
However, Merkel has also made clear in the past that she strongly supports the freedom of press.
Erdogan has been accused of shutting down newspapers and threatening journalists at home. By filing charges against German comedian Boehmermann, who works for one of the country’s main public television stations, ZDF, Erdogan has taken his fight abroad.
He also puts Merkel into an awkward position. If she accepts that Boehmermann be charged for insulting Erdogan, critics will accuse her of sacrificing press freedom.
But if she refuses to accept the charges put forward by Erdogan, she might threaten German-Turkish relations at the worst possible time when a crucial refugee deal is being implemented. If Turkey withdrew from the deal as a consequence, it would dash hopes of European nations finding a way out of the migrant crisis.
“The whole country now watches, as Erdogan embarrasses the chancellor and parades her like in a circus ring,” Der Spiegel commented on Tuesday.
The current scandal is also considered a delayed consequence of Merkel’s decision to allow hundreds of thousands of Syrians into the country last fall.
Her policies have made her so politically vulnerable that even a joke could now turn into a serious threat to her office — partially because Merkel has so far refused to clearly side with Boehmermann and those arguing that a potential trial is a threat to press freedom. The chancellor even called the comedian’s poem “deliberately offending” — a comment which was interpreted as support for Erdogan, by some. German comedian Boehmermann could either face jail time or a fine if a German court found him guilty. Other prominent members of the public, including Mathias Dopfner, head of the country’s influential Springer publishing company, have already declared support for Boehmermann. Boehmermann has deliberately provoked the public in the past and might even have expected to face a trial.
For Angela Merkel, however, his joke is starting to create real problems.