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Bachmann, Klaus
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4 articles of this author have been cited in the European Press Review so far.
Islamophobia harms Poland
Almost 55 percent of all Poles have a negative attitude to Islam, 30 percent more than four years ago according to a survey by the marketing research company TNS Obop. This Islamophobia is difficult to explain and above all harms Poland's reputation abroad, writes political scientist Klaus Bachmann in the liberal daily Gazeta Wyborcza: "And this in a country that didn't have a single conflict with Islam in the last century, and where Muslims were even a much-appreciated religious minority. They were eligible for being raised to the peerage, and in general Muslim immigration was only minimal. It's hard to explain where the Poles' aversion to Islam comes from. ... We are the ones who stand to lose the most from such an attitude. Polish Islamophobia will be a major obstacle to taking advantage of the trust that Poland enjoys in North Africa, where our country is seen as a successful example of democratisation."
» full article (external link, Polish)
More from the press review on the subject » Religion, » Minorities, » Poland, » Africa, » North Africa
Klaus Bachmann on the narrow horizons of Germans and Poles
Klaus Bachmann, German professor of politics and a former correspondent in Warsaw, criticises the debate culture between Poles and Germans in the Polish daily Fakt: "German-Polish relations have been strained by one thing above all others: the narrow horizons of those who discuss these relations. If we look at what is going on between Berlin and Warsaw one can't avoid the impression that the Germans are being patronising towards the Poles – acting arrogantly and condescendingly. … From this point of view the foundation of 'Visible Sign' and Erika Steinbach's role in it constitute an anti-Polish attempt to rewrite the history of the Second World War – as if the Germans were the victims and the Poles had sided with the evildoers. To a certain extent we can put this image into perspective by looking at what is happening in Europe now. All of a sudden the pipeline through the Baltic [the planned German-Russian pipeline project which Poland rejects] is not a project aimed against Poland but an attempt to diversify energy suppliers for Western Europe."
» more information (external link, Polish)
More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Poland
Praise for Polish democracy
German political expert Klaus Bachmann holds the view that the results of Poland's parliamentary elections on October 21 won't really constitute a turning point. "Since 1989, Polish politics has been characterised by a high degree of stability and continuity. Unlike in Germany, Italy, Belgium and many other countries, the forces that oppose democracy, the market economy and pro-Western orientation are marginal here. ... Despite all appearances to the contrary, the elections won't decide whether Poland is left isolated within Europe or whether it will obtain the status it deserves. The media and observers pay too much attention to the words of politicians and too little to their deeds. Every government since 1989 has started by stamping its foot and rattling its sabre, only to agree subsequently to anything Brussels proposes for strengthening the Union. The only difference between the Kaczynski government and its predecessors is that it stamped its foot more vigorously and then gave in particularly quickly to anything that was necessary."
» more information (external link, Polish)
More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Domestic Policy, » Poland
An appeal to reason in German-Polish relations
Scientists and journalists have called on the people of Germany and Poland to "exercise a sense of responsibility and reason" in the relations between the two states. The newspaper publishes a shortened version of the "Kopernikus Group's" appeal. "We are concerned by the unwarranted outburst of emotions regarding German-Polish relations over the past weeks. The way in which negative feelings have been overemphasized in public life contradicts the ideals of commendable persons in both Poland and Germany who have seen it as their duty to use their experiences with war and terrorist policies to improve German-Polish relations… Germans and Poles should realise they have more in common than they are given credit for by politicians with an anachronistic approach to relations between the two nations."
» full article (external link, Polish)
More from the press review on the subject » EU enlargement, » Germany, » Poland
All available articles from » Dieter Bingen, » Wlodzimierz Borodziej, » Piotr Buras, » Roland Freudenstein, » Andrea Gawrich, » Hans-Henning Hahn, » Basil Kerski, » Adam Krzeminski, » Kai-Olaf Lang, » Doris Lemmermeier, » Krzysztof Ruchniewicz, » Jürgen Vietig, » Hubert Wohlan, » Kazimierz Woycicki, » Klaus Ziemer, » Marek Zybura
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