East German must hold top role in incoming government, say The Left
{microsoft_credit="" caption="Dietmar Bartsch, then parliamentary group leader of the Left Party, speaks during a press conference in the German Parliament (Bundestag). The hard-left party's former parliamentary leader Dietmar Bartsch told dpa in comments released on Sunday that "an East German must occupy a central ministry in the new federal government - either the Finance Ministry or an Infrastructure Ministry." Michael Kappeler/dpa"}
As Germany's political parties continue to wrangle over the composition of the future coalition government, The Left is demanding the inclusion of a strong voice for the country's east.
The hard-left party's former parliamentary leader Dietmar Bartsch told dpa in comments released on Sunday that "an East German must occupy a central ministry in the new federal government - either the Finance Ministry or an Infrastructure Ministry."
Bartsch's demand came after a €500 billion ($544 billion) special fund for infrastructure and climate projects passed in the German parliament this week.
He highlighted the results of last month's parliamentary election results, in which the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) prevailed across the board in the regions of the former East Germany, capturing well over 30% of the vote.
"In the federal election, the AfD became the strongest party in the eastern German states," said Bartsch.
The incoming coalition of the conservative CDU/CSU bloc and the centre-left Social Democrats must acknowledge the result in eastern Germany, he argued.
The eastern German perspective should be represented in a central ministry and not just by a commissioner for the east, Bartsch said.
Bartsch's The Left - a successor to the Socialist Unity Party which once governed East Germany - surged to 8.8% in February's election, which strong support in its eastern heartlands.
Germany is set to mark 35 years since reunification this year, but the results of February's election showed how deeply divided the country remains.
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