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Viewing cable 07HAMBURG65, DIE LINKE ARE HERE TO STAY

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Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin
07HAMBURG65 2007-11-08 11:17 2011-08-24 01:00 UNCLASSIFIED Consulate Hamburg
VZCZCXRO1337
RR RUEHDF RUEHLZ
DE RUEHAG #0065 3121117
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 081117Z NOV 07
FM AMCONSUL HAMBURG
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0187
INFO RUCNFRG/FRG COLLECTIVE
RUEHRL/AMEMBASSY BERLIN 0172
RUEHAG/AMCONSUL HAMBURG 0207
UNCLAS HAMBURG 000065 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV GM
SUBJECT: DIE LINKE ARE HERE TO STAY 
 
REF: HAMBURG 035 
 
1. (SBU) Summary: On November 6, EUR/AGS Deputy Director Bryant 
Trick and ConGen Hamburg Pol/Econ Officer Genevieve Libonati met 
with state party leadership from both the leftist Die Linke 
party and the Green party in Bremen.  Die Linke is optimistic 
about its growth prospects; Greens leaders concurred.  End 
Summary. 
 
The Left Party: Bremen Not a Fluke 
------------------------------------------- 
 
2.  (SBU) Die Linke Bremen Director Andreas Hein and Deputy 
Chair of the Bremen Party Board Michael Lassowski discussed the 
party's continued growth in Bremen, noting that local membership 
has grown to approximately 450 people -- a 90 member increase 
over the past year.  They lamented, however, that only about 25 
percent of their members are under 30 and that the majority of 
party members were men, thus making it difficult to reach their 
50 percent quota for women in party leadership positions. 
 
3. (SBU) Lassowski predicted that after the 2009 elections Die 
Linke would have a strong enough presence in "Western" states to 
form governing coalitions and implied that the party stood 
excellent chances in Saarland, National Party Chairman Oskar 
Lafontaine's home state.  Both Hein and Lassowski expected the 
party to enter the Hamburg and Hessen state parliaments in 2008. 
 However, Hein asserted that the party needs to obtain more 
political experience before becoming a coalition partner.  He 
stated that Die Linke wanted to avoid being exploited by its 
coalition partners, as had occurred between the PDS and SPD 
during the first years of the Berlin and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern 
coalitions.  Hein maintained that "East German" PDS party 
leadership has been sharing best practices with "Western" party 
members.  Hein and Lassowski predicted the SPD would end its 
rejection of coalitions with the Linke in Western states or at 
the federal level within four years. 
 
4. (SBU) Locally, Hein explained that the party's key goals in 
Bremen now that they were in parliament were to pass a strong 
minimum wage and protect benefits for the unemployed.  Hein and 
Lassowski emphasized the party's firm opposition to foreign 
deployments of the Bundeswehr, but also said Die Linke "is a 
peace party, but not a pacifist party," clarifying that the 
party could support Bundeswehr involvement in traditional UN 
blue helmet peacekeeping missions, as long as the deployment did 
not include any combat operations.. 
 
The Greens: Ready to Govern Again 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
5. (U) In a conversation with Greens Bremen Caucus Leader 
Matthias Gueldner and Party Director Felix Holefleisch about 
climate change, the economy, and foreign policy, the party 
leaders criticized the party's indecisiveness about the 
deployment of German troops in Afghanistan. 
 
6. (SBU) Gueldner agreed that the German political system is 
developing into a five-party system and that eventually Die 
Linke will assume a more active role in governing.  He confirmed 
the Die Linke's potential of entering the Hamburg and/or Hessen 
state parliaments in upcoming elections.  Gueldner and 
Holefleisch strongly emphasized, however, that the Green party 
has no intention of ever forming a coalition with Die Linke and 
emphasized that the Greens identify themselves more as liberals, 
and certainly not as leftists.  Both politicians postulated that 
with Die Linke on the political scene it will become more 
difficult for the SPD or CDU to lead only two-party coalitions 
and that three-party alliances may soon dominate the 
governmental landscape.  Gueldner asserted that the Greens are 
well positioned to lead and expected the Greens to have their 
choice of coalition partners in Hamburg depending upon which 
numerical combination is more advantageous. 
 
JOHNSON