Insulting Erdogan: Merkel Falls Flat Over Satirical Poem

Free speech vents anger, and an ability to ignore insults, instead pursuing debate and analysis of good policies, lends power. German Chancellor Angela Merkel is moving ahead on prosecution of a comedian who made a crude satiric comment about the Turkish president in a crisis of state that reveals poor judgment and diminished power from both heads of state. A German law prohibits the insulting of foreign institutions and representatives, and Merkel also moved to abolish that law. An essay by Stefan Kuzmany for Spiegel International outlines Merkel’s diplomatic errors: misreading European opinion on admitting thousands of refugees from Syria and miscalculating her own ability to persuade others to take a humane approach; working with thin-skinned Erdogan “to maintain the image of welcoming openness while eliminating the incentives to come” as well overlooking corruption in Turkey, alleged support for extremists, attacks on opposition in his own country and media censorship. Erdogan and Merkel can expect to be the butt of jokes far and wide and attacked by more serious analysts for exacerbating the refugee crisis. – YaleGlobal