“A left for everyone”
Chairmen want to renew the Left Party
The party leaders Martin Schirdewan and Janine Wissler. The Left wants to reorganize itself after the departure of Sahra Wagenknecht and other members. photo
© Karl-Josef Hildenbrand/dpa
Almost a month ago, the long dispute between Sahra Wagenknecht and her party escalated. Ten members of the Bundestag resigned. Now the left wants to secure its survival with a campaign.
After the split, the party trend changed Sahra Wagenknecht wants the Left to win back voters with a campaign to renew the party. The “One Left for All” initiative was launched by party leaders Janine Wissler and Martin Schirdewan on Saturday at the federal party conference in Augsburg. “This weekend we are starting a new chapter,” said Wissler.
The campaign is intended to end and resolve the lengthy internal disputes that culminated with the resignation of Wagenknecht’s ten members of the Bundestag. “The conflicts in recent years have increasingly paralyzed us and could no longer be resolved,” said the party leader.
But the problems were not solved simply because a dispute had now ended. Structural and strategic tasks were left undone. It’s about making the left strong again and making it the opposition to the traffic light government in Berlin, said Wissler.
700 new members since Wagenknecht left
Wagenknecht and her supporters left the Left on October 23rd to found a rival party. The Left points out that more than 700 new people have joined the party since then. This is “an encouraging signal”. At the party conference, three young women who had entered were able to explain their motives.
Previously, Bundestag parliamentary group leader Dietmar Bartsch had again sharply attacked Wagenknecht’s group and made them responsible for the dissolution of the left-wing parliamentary group. The liquidation was a “tremendous defeat,” he said.
Again sharp criticism of the Wagenknecht Group
“The responsibility for this lies first and foremost with the ten MPs who have left the party. Or rather, the nine MPs who see the tenth only as a political savior,” said Bartsch, without mentioning Wagenknecht by name. Because of the split, the Left parliamentary group in the Bundestag must dissolve on December 6th.
At the party conference, the delegates agreed to demand an increase in the legal minimum wage to 15 euros per hour and automatic inflation compensation. So far, the Left has advocated a target of 14 euros, which is also what the SPD and the Greens want. The general statutory minimum wage is currently 12 euros. On January 1, 2024 it is expected to rise to 12.41 euros, and a year later to 12.82 euros.
Heated debate about Gaza war
Late on Friday evening, after a heated debate, the delegates had already agreed on a position on the Gaza war. A large majority called for an immediate ceasefire and the immediate release of the Israeli hostages kidnapped by Hamas. The decision emphasized Israel’s right to exist and the goal of a two-state solution. Anti-Semitism in Germany is condemned, but also warned against anti-Muslim sentiments.
The compromise proposal, which was negotiated in advance, was important to the party leadership so that the Left did not appear divided on the issue. However, there were also more extreme positions in the debate. Delegate Nick Papak Amoozegar accused Israel of “genocide”, the “targeted destruction of a people” and “ethnic cleansing”. There were shouts of protest from the ranks of the delegates. Wissler criticized on Saturday that some statements and the tone in the debate did not do justice to the suffering of the people in the Middle East.
The main topic of the party’s meeting in Bavaria, which runs until Sunday, is the European elections in June 2024. Schirdewan and the refugee and climate activist Carola Rackete will then lead the list of candidates.