Mediator Merkel, Torture and Corruption | Services from Deutsche Welle | DW | 20.12.2005
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Mediator Merkel, Torture and Corruption

DW-WORLD readers this week commented on the EU summit and Chancellor Angela Merkel's success as a mediator; suggestions to use testimony obtained during torture; and corruption in Germany.

Merkel's performance at her first major summit as chancellor turned out to be a success

Merkel's performance at her first major summit as chancellor turned out to be a success

The following comments reflect the views of our readers. Not all reader comments have been published. DW-WORLD reserves the right to edit for length and appropriateness of content.

EU summit

From the recent success as mediator at EU we notice German Chancellor Angela Merkel's skill and charisma exerting impressive influence over the dead lock between France and Britain. She stands head and shoulder above other EU members as a voice on behalf of them. -- r033121

Britain has not failed. It has put the key issue on the table: The EU finances are a disgrace, and so long as they remain a disgrace, Britain is not going to pay a larger share than at present. Now let's be clear: France and Germany have the exact same position on payments as Britain -- neither is willing to pay more. Indeed, only Britain has offered compromise. France and Germany have offered no compromise, even conditionally. The solution is transparency. The source of the money is going to have to be made visible to Europeans in the form of an EU tax. And the uses of the money will have to be made clear in the EU budget, and then audited. Fixing this broken budgetary system is crucial to the EU's long-term viability, and it is better faced sooner than later. -- Wiley Horne, US

EU Gipfel in Brüssel Flagge Großbritannien

Did Britain give up too much for the EU?

I don't understand why you state the budget crisis was by Britain's own design -- they were entitled to the rebates as much as France is to the hallowed agricultural subsidies. I see France kept those. -- americancommercial

Angela Merkel did the right thing to show eastern Europe that Germany is willing to be more considerate about smaller countries. During the Schröder era, only Russia counted and this seriously antagonized and blocked Germans and eastern European states. They started to be wary of Germany as much as they are about Russia. Merkel started her post as a chancellor with courage and effectiveness. It looks she has some greater European vision in her mind, not just money. Unfortunately French farmers as usual got away with all subsidies they wanted. French are too egoistic about their self interest. Maybe demagogue Chirac should learn from Merkel to be more flexible and more generous to other poorer nations? -- jpf

Testimony from torture

Bildgalerie Minister Wolfgang Schäuble Innenminister

German Interior Minister Wolfgang Schäuble

For a German minister to even talk of obtaining information from anyone (through torture) takes us back to the good old days of Nazism. Perhaps this minister was in the Hitler Jugend as a boy, so he sees nothing wrong with this approach, which in violation of International Covenants. Perhaps Herr Schäuble should be the first to be tortured, to find out whether he is a Nazi posing as a democratically elected servant of the German people. His very statements border on the political correctness of Nazi Germany. Remember where there is smoke, there is fire. -- Kenneth T. Tellis, Canada

Corruption in Germany

I don't think Germany is any more corrupt than any other country. In my country, companies are able to buy politicians by giving them a campaign contribution. We need to discourage this. We need to remove the need to show a quick profit. One way might be to discourage stock investors from investing in a stock to sell it and make a quick profit. We need to encourage investors to look to the long term, and we need have real campaign finance reform. -- Lee Davis

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