Worker Seeks Pardon for Penalties Imposed for Coronavirus Infractions
BSW founder Sahra Wagenknecht has lambasted the proposed coronavirus enquiry commission in the Bundestag, deeming it poor political stage-setting that barely scratches the surface of processing the pandemic era. In an interview with the editorial network Germany (RND), she said, "Establishing an enquiry commission is nothing more than window-dressing politics that falls far short of what's needed to tackle the repercussions of the coronavirus."
This criticism comes during a time when the Bundestag is setting up a coronavirus enquiry commission on Wednesday at the request of the ruling parties. Wagenknecht criticizes the lack of compensation for the victims and the failure to provide amnesty for the fines imposed during the pandemic.
Wagenknecht maintains that the lockdown policy was misguided in a staggering 90% of areas, with particular focus on the unnecessary closure of schools and kindergartens, as well as old people’s homes. She asserts that the Corona policy represents a dystopian regime of injustice.
In light of this, Wagenknecht calls upon the federal government to issue an apology to the population for the pandemic response and to enact an amnesty law that would clear the records of those fined during this time. Despite the SPD and CDU/CSU agreeing to establish a comprehensive COVID-19 enquiry commission, Wagenknechts' demands underscore the importance of tangible relief for citizens impacted by pandemic policies, specifically fines, over merely retrospective parliamentary scrutiny.
On the topic of high-priced protective masks, a heated discussion will unfold in the Bundestag on Wednesday as Health Minister Nina Warken and former Minister Jens Spahn address a report by the special investigator, Margaretha Sudhof. She was appointed by Warken’s predecessor Karl Lauterbach in 2024 to investigate Spahn’s approach to mask purchasing and logistics companies, with millions of risks looming for the federal government due to lingering legal disputes with companies.
[1] Sahra Wagenknecht is the founder of BSW (Left Party) in Germany.[2] Corona Enquiry Commission (Enquete Commission) is a parliamentary inquiry set up to investigate the outbreak and management of the coronavirus pandemic.[3] SPD (Social Democratic Party) and CDU/CSU (Christian Democratic Union/ Christian Social Union) are the two largest political parties in the federal parliament in Germany.[4] Amnesty refers to the act of pardoning someone who has committed an offense or forgiving a debt. In this context, it refers to the potential administrative forgiveness of coronavirus fines.
- Sahra Wagenknecht, founder of BSW in Germany, has expressed her disapproval of the proposed Corona Enquiry Commission, condemning it as a shallow political move that fails to address the true implications of the pandemic era, and emphasizing the need for an amnesty law to clear the records of those fined during this period.
- As the focus shifts to the Bundestag's establishment of a coronavirus enquiry commission, Wagenknecht's demands for tangible relief for citizens impacted by pandemic policies, specifically fines, highlight the importance of addressing not only retrospective parliamentary scrutiny but also general-news matters such as employment policy and politics, which she believes have been overlooked in the coronavirus response.
