Kohl? Nein Danke!

AS WEST German citizens, we are disappointed with Harvard's choice of Chancellor Helmut Kohl as the Commencement speaker. Only three years after West German President Richard von Weizsacker gave a brilliant speech at Commencement, we will be embarassed to hear Kohl speak for Germans on such sensitive topics as reunification and Germany's relation to its past.

As Harvard-Radcliffe students, we are concerned that Kohl is not an appropriate speaker at an event that celebrates the conclusion of a liberal education. The most distinguishing characteristic of Chancellor Kohl is his relentless drive for power, which hardly qualifies him as a positive role model for graduating seniors.

AT AGE 18, Kohl told friends that his aim in life was to become the ruler of Germany. At Harvard, we have met several people with similar aspirations. While we can dismiss their ambitions as immature and juvenile, it is scary that Kohl actually followed through on his plan and is now bound to become the leader of a unified Germany.

Kohl became chancellor in 1982 largely by default, after Kohl's main competitior, the late Franz Joseph Strauss, had discredited himself as a viable candidate following his defeat in the 1980 election. Kohl was fortunate enough to be the opposition leader when the governing socialist-liberal coalition under Helmut Schmidt crumbled.

Ever since, Kohl's guiding principle has been to preserve and enlarge his own personal power. Competitors within his own party, such as Kurt Biedenkopf, former General Secretary Heiner Geissler, and the President of the Bundestag Rita Sussmuth were either demoted or "promoted" to figurehead positions. Now, his Christian Democrats are in the lamentable state of lacking any leadership figure besides Kohl.

His foreign policy has been embarassing to those Germans who believe that all of Germany's past, and in particular the Third Reich, must be remembered when trying to master the present. Kohl believes that absolution can be achieved simply by claiming die Gnade der spaten Geburt (literally, the grace of late birth, referring to the fact that he was only 16 in 1945).

Once again the contrast to von Weizsacker could hardly be more striking. While von Weizsacker spoke of the need to confront the past at the 40th anniversary of V-E Day in 1985, Kohl celebrated German-American friendship with Ronald Reagan at Bitburg over the graves of SS soldiers. In light of Kohl's view of history, this incident and others--such as his comparison of Gorbachev to Hitler's propaganda minister--cannot be excused as isolated judgment errors.

More recently, his refusal to recognize the Oder-Neisse line as Poland's definitive Western border reconfirms that he prefers to cater to a small domestic right-wing audience rather than pursue reconciliation with those who suffered most during the Nazi rule.

KOHL'S self-proclaimed desire to enter history as one of Germany's greatest chancellors has guided his policy towards East Germany. Ever since the wall crumbled in November, Kohl has been pushing for reunification at breakneck speed in order to ensure that he will be in charge of the reunited Germany. The Economist has aptly described unification as "Kohl's Anschluss" and the unified Germany as "Kohl's Kingdom," a pawn for his personal aggrandizement.

The elections in East Germany on March 18 are a case in point. Kohl pressured three East German parties to join forces by forming the "Alliance for Germany," which, incidentally, was proclaimed in Bonn rather than in East Berlin. At campaign rallies in East Germany, he let himself be announced as the "Chancellor of the German Fatherland." Subsequently, he declared openly that the flow of West German aid to East Germany was conditional on the outcome of East German elections.

Given this situation, it is hardly surprising that the East Germans gave the Alliance for Germany an absolute majority.

At the moment, Bonn is preparing the final documents for monetary and economic reunification; East Germany has two weeks to modify the submission of the East German economy to West German control. The haste is a direct result of the upcoming election campaign in West Germany, where speedy reunification is Kohl's trump card. A crucial political decision involving an explosive historical precedent has become a stepping stone to Kohl's personal power.

If Harvard is looking for a power politician, Kohl is the man of choice. If, however, Harvard is looking for a leader with integrity, it should look again.

Ulrich Baer '91 resides in Berlin, Fabian Birgfeld '92 in Hamburg, Stephan Klasen '90-91 in Trier, and Albert Wenger '90 in Nuremberg.