Bavaria's CSU party has dominated German national politics for weeks with its hard-line asylum policy. The media circus was viewed as an elaborate campaign strategy ahead of state elections, but has the plan backfired?
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/S. Hoppe
Advertisement
Horst Seehofer loves his native Bavaria. So when he announced at the last Christian Social Union (CSU) party summit that he would remain leader of the conservative Bavarian party when taking up the post of German interior minister — but hand over the position of state premier to his rival Markus Söder — he emphatically declared: "Bavaria is paradise!" The duo now intend to ensure the CSU will once again win the upcoming Bavarian state elections on October 14.
Trouble in paradise
Bavaria's ruling CSU government is proud of its picturesque state, which has long been a popular destination for foreign tourists. Indeed, Bavaria's Ministry of Economic Affairs, Energy and Technology has even declared that tourism plays a key role in shaping the state's identity. But in the eyes of Bavarian government leadership, the influx of refugees to Germany in 2015 threatened to tarnish the state's image as a tranquil holiday heaven. That's despite the fact that the number of new arrivals has significantly dropped since then.
Early this summer, Interior Minister Seehofer announced his so-called migration masterplan, with 63 steps to reform the country's approach towards asylum-seekers. However, Chancellor Angela Merkel of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), which is allied with the CSU at the national level, rejected Seehofer's plan to turn individuals away at the German border who had already registered in other European Union member states. Merkel told Seehofer to keep his "masterplan" under wraps. Gradually, the conflict between the two conservative politicians escalated into a veritable government crisis. Some observers even feared the rift could bring down the long-standing alliance between the CSU and CDU.
What distinguishes Bavaria from the rest of Germany
Bavaria's colorful traditions have often been used as symbols of Germany's culture. Yet as the current political disputes show, the southern German state has its own distinct identity.
Image: picture-alliance/blickwinkel/McPHOTO
Believed to be 'typically German'
Many people who've never set foot in Germany have this image of Germans drinking beer and eating sausage, while wearing traditional costumes — Lederhosen for men and Dirndl for women — and performing the Schuhplatter stomp dance (picture). Though these clichés often serve to depict Germany as a whole, the traditions actually come from Bavaria, a German state with a very distinct culture.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
A state with its own political culture
The current disputes between Chancellor Angela Merkel and Horst Seehofer have exposed to the world that Bavaria has its own party within the German government. While Merkel's Christian Democratic Union (CDU) operates in 15 states of Germany, Bavaria is the only state with its own counterpart, the Christian Social Union in Bavaria (CSU), led by Seehofer.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/T. Hase
A free state
Bavaria's official name, Free State of Bavaria, was adopted after monarchy was abolished in several German states in the aftermath of World War I. While most Bavarians do not want to separate from Germany, many of them identify as "Bavarians" first. Actually, the state also includes the Franconians in the north, the Swabians in the south west, while Altbayern (Old Bavaria) makes up the south east.
Image: picture-alliance/chromorange/R. Peters
An influential Catholic tradition
One of the main historical differences giving Bavaria its distinct identity was that while many German territories that joined the German Empire in 1871 were Protestant, Bavaria was one of the few major German powers to remain Catholic. Incidentally, Pope Benedict XVI was born in Bavaria.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/dpaweb/A. Brambatti
Crosses 'are culture'
The number of Catholics in Bavaria is on the decline, but the state's politicians still see it as a predominant aspect of its culture. The recent law requiring a Christian cross to be displayed in the lobby of every public building in Bavaria made international headlines. "This is about culture, not religion," explained one Bavarian mayor, Christian Moser.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/M. Balk
Strong dialects
Foreigners who've spent years learning German might not understand a simple breakfast conversation in Bavaria, as many Bavarians speak with a strong dialect. This is also related to religion. High German started spreading through Luther's Bible in Protestant regions, while Bavarians took pride in their dialects, which includes Bairisch (Bavarian Austrian), East Franconian and Swabian German.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
A famous beer culture
One of Germany's most famous events, Oktoberfest, is also Bavarian. Over 6 million visitors head to the Munich-based event every year, and it inspires similar festivals around the world. Germany's influential Beer Purity Law, which prescribes that only hop, malt, yeast and water be used in the brewing process, was also issued there, by the Duke of Bavaria in 1516.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/A. Gebert
An open beer garden tradition
Along with the beer purity law, Bavaria has its own beer garden decree from 1812 that allows guests to bring their own picnic — pretzels, sausages and other appetizers — to the beer garden. The tradition has remained part of Bavaria's convivial charm to this day.
Image: Colourbox/Kzenon
An amazing cuisine
If you are lucky enough to have a Bavarian friend who likes to cook, you will discover that Bavaria is not only the home of the popular Weisswurst sausage and Brezen (Pretzel), but also of a number of delicious regional specialties, including Flädlesuppe (pancake soup), Maultaschen (which look like large raviolis) and Spätzle (a kind of soft egg noodle, pictured).
Image: DW/L. Frey
A successful football team
Bavaria's football team, FC Bayern München, is the most successful club in German football history and one of the best in Europe. It has won a record of 28 national titles and 18 national cups. The club has nearly 300,000 members worldwide. At the center of this picture is vice-captain Thomas Müller, who also plays for the German national team.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/P. Kneffel
A legendary car producer
One of the world's most legendary auto brands is also Bavarian. BMW stands for "Bayerische Motoren Werke," or Bavarian Motor Works. The headquarters of the company founded in 1916 are in Munich.
Image: picture alliance/dpa/A. Gebert
Inspiring natural landscapes
Connected with the Bohemian Forest on the Czech side of the border, the Bavarian Forest makes up the largest continuous woodland area in Europe. The protected national park is home to many endangered species of animals, including the European wildcat (picture), which has been named animal of the year 2018 in Germany.
Image: picture-alliance/Arco Images/C.Wermter
Spectacular landmarks
Bavaria's medieval buildings are a must-see attraction for many people visiting Germany. Its most photographed castle is Neuschwanstein, which is visited by over 1.3 million people every year. The fairy tale look of this castle inspired Walt Disney's Magic Kingdom castle.
Image: picture-alliance/robertharding/R. Moiola
An image exported to and through the US
Bavarian culture also became synonymous with Germany through the fact that after World War II, many American army bases were in the south of Germany, where Bavaria is located. The strong traditions of the region left a lasting impression on the US occupiers, and American pop culture contributed to spreading this image throughout the world.
Image: Fotolia/Stihl024
14 images1 | 14
A state party with national influence
So how can the CSU, with its relatively small voter base, have so much influence on German national politics? The reason is simple. The southern state is Germany's largest and generates one-fifth of the country's GDP. And not only that. It has been ruling Bavaria for over six decades. With delegates in almost every administrative district and municipal council, it can implement its policies without much opposition. And even though the CSU is a thoroughly Bavarian party, it also has delegates in Germany's national parliament, the Bundestag. In last year's general election, the party won 6.2 percent of the national vote — thanks mainly to overwhelming support from the Bavarian electorate — and thus entered the Bundestag. For many years, the CSU and CDU have formed a single parliamentary group. Presently, both parties, along with Germany's center-left Social Democrats (SPD), govern the country in a grand coalition.
Strategic tension
Seehofer and Merkel find it difficult to work with each other. The recent fight over Seehofer's "masterplan" is just the latest divisive incident. From the very beginning, Seehofer has taken issue with Merkel's open door policy towards asylum-seekers.
And yet, Seehofer's most recent confrontation with Merkel may, in fact, have backfired. Many observers speculated that his insistence on a tougher stance toward asylum-seekers was really about appealing to supporters of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party ahead of Bavarian state elections. Recent polls, however, indicate the CSU is doing poorly in Bavaria, which the SPD and Greens will be happy to capitalize on.
Bavaria's electorate apparently did not appreciate Seehofer's fiercely confrontational approach to Merkel. Indeed, Seehofer even told one media outlet he would not even accept it if Merkel told him to resign because, in his view, her tenure depends on his party.
The asylum dispute between Merkel and Seehofer threatened to bring down Germany's ruling grand coalitionImage: Getty Images/S. Gallup
Bavarian State Premier Söder, whom The New York Times recently described as "Germany's Donald Trump," has pursued a similarly brash style to Seehofer and has not shied away from controversial statements. He once claimed refugees arriving in Germany were engaging in a kind of "asylum tourism" in search of material benefits. Not only that, after taking up the post of state premier, Söder ordered that all state offices hang a crucifix — a move that even drew criticism from Germany's Christian churches.
Ignoring Christian values?
In an interview with German weekly Die Zeit, the chairman of the German Bishops' Conference, Reinhard Marx, argued that the CSU, which is a self-proclaimed Christian party, "has certain responsibilities in the sense of honoring Christian social values, especially when it comes to helping the poor and weak."
Seehofer, meanwhile, rejects this criticism and in turn claims the backlash is a deliberate campaign to vilify him and his party. He told German daily Augsburger Allgemeine that his detractors lacked "decency and manners."
Be that as it may, Bavaria's state elections on October 14 will show whether Seehofer and Söder's confrontational approach has paid off and garnered the CSU additional votes. Or if it has, in fact, backfired.
