PRESSURE IS building on the Bundesbank to dismiss a board member for suggesting Muslims are a danger to German society and that Jews have a unique genetic make-up.
Germany's central bank has criticised the "discriminatory remarks" and "repeated provocations" of Thilo Sarrazin, a former Social Democrat finance minister in Berlin, in his book Germany is Abolishing Itself.
Launching the book yesterday, Mr Sarrazin stood by his controversial claim that he believed Muslim migrants’ religious beliefs and cultural traditions made them less capable or willing of integrating into German society.
Mr Sarrazin suggests in his book that German society will pay a high price for Muslim immigrants in Germany – around seven per cent of the population, who are less well educated than the average and have above-average numbers of children.
Immigrant lobby groups have attacked his claim that “50 to 80 per cent of intelligence is inherited” as an insinuation that intelligence is directly related to education and ethnicity.
At a packed press conference yesterday, photographers snapped pictures of the moustachioed Mr Sarrazin for over 10 minutes. Journalists scrambled for seats, with one remarking: “Only the chancellor gets this kind of attention.” But Angela Merkel stayed well away yesterday, making clear her displeasure at Mr Sarrazin during a television interview.
“The Bundesbank is a figurehead for our country as a whole,” said Dr Merkel, describing Mr Sarrazin’s remarks as “completely unacceptable” and “divisive”.
Though the Bundesbank is independent, she said she was “certain they will discuss this”.
Mr Sarrazin attempted to row back yesterday from his claim in a newspaper interview that “all Jews share specific genes”. He issued a statement apologising for failing to express himself precisely, adding he was not making a “value judgment” or “racist remark” about Jews.
Mr Sarrazin’s remark and clarification appear to arise from a misreading of recent reports on scientific studies, published in the journal Nature and elsewhere, which have found closer genetic ties than previously thought among some Jewish groups, similar to those found in population groups in Iceland and Sardinia. He declined to answer when a journalist asked him what would happen to her Christian genes if she converted to Judaism to marry.
After a week-long row, the Bundesbank said yesterday it was no longer happy to turn a blind eye after a year of regular provocations from Mr Sarrazin. In a statement, the bank said he had breached guidelines obliging employees to observe “moderation and restraint” to “preserve the reputation of the bank in public.
“The board has recognised that Mr Sarrazin’s remarks have damaged the prestige of the bank.”
Though the bank’s board has called in Mr Sarrazin to explain himself, it has no power to fire him. That lies with German president Christian Wulff. He has so far declined to comment; his office said yesterday they were studying his book.