Merkel's Cowardly Fear of Snowden

What a coincidence: Shortly before Chancellor Angela Merkel headed out to visit U.S. President Barack Obama, it had come to light that the German federal government was against an inquiry into whistleblower Edward Snowden before the NSA panel.

His testimony could harm the “public weal.” Beg your pardon? Isn’t it actually the other way round? To this day, NSA espionage has harmed the public weal of the Federal Republic of Germany because American agents have also been spying on Germany’s politics, economy and citizens in a way that is simply outrageous.

Snowden Has Acted in the Country’s Interest

We can forever be grateful to Snowden for shedding light on this enormity. Without him, we would still be oblivious to the scale of the programs conducted by the NSA, so it was this whistleblower who was acting in the interest of the people. Even if the government assumes that he wouldn’t have anything fundamentally new to report to the panel — something nobody can know — his questioning is essential, as is also a valuation of his actions.

However, the German government — the great coalition, to be more precise — wants neither clearance nor a conflict with the U.S.A. From the beginning, their efforts haven’t involved anything more than a few empty objections and bemoaning a loss of trust. Now, in the midst of the Ukraine crisis, the government is no longer interested in the surveillance scandal.

A smooth and trusting cooperation of intelligence agencies on both sides of the Atlantic is more important to them. In the end, German institutions rely on help from the U.S.A. This is how the great coalition redefines “public weal” — to their benefit and contrary to the interests of the German parliament and people. This is no coincidence.