Former Federal President
Gauck: Defending democracy in times of crisis
“Because we, the citizens, are the ones who either gamble away freedom or defend and preserve it,” says Joachim Gauck. photo
© Christian Charisius/dpa
The rise of right-wing populism and Islamism has also shaken some of Joachim Gauck’s old political certainties. The former Federal President draws a clear conclusion from this.
Gauck’s memoirs entitled “Winter in Summer – Spring in Autumn” were first published in 2017. In the new edition published on Wednesday, Gauck admits that his “historical optimism of the past” has been put into perspective. “In any case, with the disturbing drift towards the far right and the Islamist currents, the certainty that our liberal democracy is consistently stable and indestructible has been lost.”
Constitutions neither automatically protect us from authoritarian politicians coming to power, nor can constitutions ultimately prevent democratic principles from being undermined. “But instead of complaining about the undoubtedly existing dangers and standing idly by as developments unfold, I would like to call for people to mobilize their forces and look for solutions,” Gauck continued. This should happen “not by falling back into authoritarian thought patterns and structures from supposedly lost golden times, but rather with political and practical innovations that take the new circumstances into account.”
“I wish that young people and those who have never had to live in bondage could make liberal democracy their inner conviction again or again,” said Gauck. “Because we, the citizens, are the ones who either gamble away freedom or defend and preserve it.”