Work to do
June 10, 2014
The sun briefly hid behind dark rain clouds as German President Joachim Gauck made his way to Cologne's Keupstrasse, the street in a Turkish neighborhood where a bicycle carrying a nail bomb exploded 10 years ago. Police failed to attribute the attack, which injured 22 people, in some cases seriously, to those behind it: the right-wing extremists in the National Socialist Underground (NSU). Gauck struggled for the right words to express his sadness and anger.
At the site of the attack, Gauck trod heavily as the people gathered for his speech watched him from under their umbrellas with questioning eyes. Why? Germany doesn't just owe an answer to this question to the humiliated relatives of the NSU's victims, who themselves had to suffer through a series of shameless accusations and failures in the investigation.
The victims' families now expect a comprehensive account of the right-wing murders and their investigation - as do the majority of Germans, who both can and desire to live peacefully with people from other countries and cultural backgrounds.
'Your hatred spurs us on!'
Considering the menacing shift to the right during European parliamentary elections at the end of May, Germans also must seek to be a good example to other Europeans. They must use every means available to defend against attacks against human dignity and their democracy. Representing the country as a whole, Gauck spoke to the disappointed and angry Turkish minority gathered at Keupstrasse and said in reference to extremists, 'Your hatred spurs us on!'
The NSU terrorist crimes cannot be allowed to lead once more to a self-destructive lethargy. Those who remain silent about atrocities committed by right-wing extremists risk endangering the social foundation of pluralism.
Turks, along with millions of people from other cultures, have helped foster a colorful atmosphere of diversity in Central Europe. The presence of this spectrum of cultures represents the guarantee for safeguarding the standard of living enjoyed in contemporary Europe and offers the best example for struggling democracies on the periphery of the continent, such as Turkey. There must never be another rude awakening only because crimes in Germany have been taken too lightly and underestimated.