Third event of the Bonn International Democracy Award in the series "Democracy thrives on participation"
Former Federal President Joachim Gauck at the University of Bonn on the topic "Our democracy must be resilient"
Hardly a seat was left empty when former German President Joachim Gauck spoke on the topic of democracy in the auditorium of the University of Bonn on May 14, 2024. The event was organized by the International Democracy Prize Bonn e.V.(IDP) and the University of Bonn. Gauck was speaking as part of the "Democracy lives from participation" series, which the IDP association launched with the region's universities to keep the topic in the public eye between the award ceremonies. The fact that the lecture took place in the run-up to the celebrations for the 75th anniversary of the Basic Law made it even more topical.
After Prof. Dr. Dr. hc Michael Hoch welcomed more than 600 representatives of Bonn's urban society, including Mayor Katja Dörner, the Deputy Chairwoman of the IDP, Prof. Dorothee Dzwonnek, introduced the topic, naming key stages in the biography of the former Federal President and vividly describing the area that is always the first to be attacked by the enemies of democracy: the rule of law.
In his subsequent speech, which lasted almost an hour, Gauck took a personal look at the current state of democracy and its defensibility, recalling the different socialization in East and West. Under the title "Our democracy must be defensible", he explored the question of why the trust of many citizens in our liberal democracy has been shaken. According to Gauck, what is it that threatens our democracy from outside and also from within and how can we counter this?
The former Federal President explained that in different regions of the world, in East and West, authoritarian leaders are increasingly negating the rule of law and are working on
This was replaced by the "right of the strongest". For too long, people had believed in constructive cooperation and partnership activities with Russia. Many people in the free world are therefore disturbed and are looking for answers for this new era. The climate crisis, migration, digitalization, artificial intelligence and, last but not least, the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the terror of Hamas and its effects mean that our country (like many other countries) is facing challenges that demand far more from democracy and our society than in previous decades. In an era of accelerated change, many citizens are therefore experiencing uncertainty and fear. That is why, according to Gauck, we need new meeting formats in the democratic center that address the concerns and fears of the insecure and also develop new opportunities for citizen participation and also for participation at local level. According to Gauck, it is essential to significantly strengthen political communication.
The subsequent discussion with Prof. Dorothee Dzwonnek provided the audience with interesting tips on how to take concrete action. If the complexity of political problems increases, politicians must adapt their messages in order to get through to voters, ideally with enlightening simplifications that allow problems to be described in such a way that democratic solutions and compromises become possible. According to Gauck, he himself often resorts to comparisons in discussions with people who are hostile to our democracy and asks where problems are dealt with better than here. According to Gauck, in these times it is particularly important to preserve what has proven itself and what makes us feel at home and at the same time to change attitudes that paralyze us, make us untrustworthy and lack solidarity. Our democracy must be constantly revitalized and, above all, defended by responsible citizens, even in the face of resistance. This also applies in Germany. Although radicalization can primarily be observed on the political fringes and the majority of Germans still place themselves in the political center, everyone is nevertheless called upon to be vigilant. A democracy needs self-confident and responsible citizens who want to shape and know how to shape the space that has been given to them. Gauck: "The state and democracy are WE. The state and democracy can only be as functional, effective, tolerant, liveable and lovable as WE shape them."