State Election Result - A bad omen for Merkel's coalition? | Women as Victims - Germany's ongoing rape debate | Hesitant Support - Germany and the war in Mali | Fighting against Forgetfulness - Inge Deutschkron
Angela Merkel's conservative party and the pro-business Free Democrats have again failed to win a key state election. The Social Democrats and Greens will now form a coalition in Lower Saxony. So what does that mean for the Chancellor's chances in September's federal elections? Merkel herself is extremely popular, but some see her junior coalition party as a liability.
A brutal rape in India recently made global headlines. In Germany, discussion of rape was also long taboo. Germany didn't outlaw rape within marriage until 1997. We retrace the debate and the struggles of women's rights organizations and female politicians.
France is waging war in Mali and calling for EU involvement. Germany refused to participate in last year's intervention in Libya. But this time around, Berlin is providing logistical support, with aircraft and a training mission. But why isn't Germany committing itself more extensively to the fight against Islamist terrorism in Mali?
Germans favor logistical support in Mali, but they decisively oppose sending their troops to fight the Islamists.
As a child, Inge Deutschkron survived the Nazi terror by going into hiding in Berlin. She grew up to become a committed Social Democrat and journalist. On Holocaust Remembrance Day, she will address the Bundestag.
