Merkel back on top thanks to her handling of virus crisis
Shops in Germany began reopening for business on Monday after being shut for more than a month as the country battled the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. Though a few other nations have also begun easing lockdown restrictions, Germany’s moves are in sharp contrast to all other large EU countries, which continue to struggle to contain the crisis, its casualties and its economic damage.
Germany has so far stood out with its handling of the outbreak, though initially its response did seem to be drifting. The country registered its first case in late January, but neither the government nor the people seemed to be too worried at that stage and life carried on as normal for several weeks. By late February, the government, led by Chancellor Angela Merkel, decided to impose curbs in increments, with a complete lockdown announced only in late March.
When announcing the lockdown, Merkel took to addressing the nation — an unprecedented move for her. Previously, Merkel had addressed the German people only on the occasion of New Year. In her speech, instead of coming across as a leader ordering people to stay indoors and respect the conditions of the lockdown, Merkel said that, due to her East German origins, she understood the value of personal liberty. She added that the crisis facing the country was unprecedented and needed the active participation and support of the entire German population, without which the government would not be able to win the critical battle to contain the virus’ spread.
The message definitely hit home, and the entire country rigorously followed the lockdown conditions, leading to a flattening of the curve in terms of the number of new cases. But it was not just through seeking the support of the German people that Merkel was able to control the epidemic to a point where the country could begin taking tentative steps toward reopening. Unlike her fellow EU leaders, Merkel has taken a very scientific approach to tackling the disease, perhaps due to her own professional training as a physicist. While the rest of the EU’s leaders were still wishing the virus away, Merkel took decisive measures to arrest the spread of the disease.
Germany’s superior healthcare infrastructure also played a key role, while other nations took a hit due to decades of sustained under-investment. Germany is also close to developing a vaccine against COVID-19.
As a result of all of the above, Germany compares favorably with its fellow large EU nations in dealing with the pandemic, with about 150,000 infections and 5,000 deaths, as against 25,000 fatalities in Italy and more than 21,000 in both France and Spain.
While dealing with the pandemic medically, Merkel also kept an eye on the effects of the crisis on other aspects of German life, notably the economy. At the time of the lockdown, Merkel announced a huge economic relief package, putting more than €1.1 trillion ($1.18 trillion) into the battle to save the national economy. Germany was one of the first nations to announce a coronavirus relief package. By dealing with this unprecedented crisis, at least so far, in a nearly exemplary manner, Merkel has once again shown her leadership mettle. She had led Europe almost singlehandedly during the 2008 financial crisis and the subsequent move to rescue the euro from collapse. This showed her to be a true leader of Europe. Even during the refugee crisis in 2015, Merkel displayed bold and decisive leadership to open Germany’s borders to millions of hapless migrants who were fleeing war and death. Even though her policy has arguably led to a rise of the extreme right wing in Germany, Merkel has stood by her decision and indeed shown the way to other EU leaders. In dealing with the coronavirus, Merkel has again led the way.
Domestically, her handling of the crisis has offered a tremendous boost to her sagging ratings, as well as lifting the popularity of her center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party, which had been losing political terrain to the Greens for more than a year. But the CDU is not out of the woods yet.
Merkel has already announced her decision to retire next year, when federal elections are scheduled. She stepped down as the head of the CDU in December 2018 and was succeeded by her protege Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, with the objective of also handing her the reins of the country in 2021. However, KrampKarrenbauer could not manage the party and resigned as leader last year, leaving Merkel’s succession plan in tatters.
Even though the elections are still more than a year away, the coronavirus pandemic is unlikely to disappear from Europe any time soon. And Merkel’s successful handling of the crisis may put her in a spot, as any political transition could undo the gains that Germany has made. Merkel could be called upon to stay on for at least another year. But will she agree?