Berlin, October 23 (BNA) Outgoing German Chancellor Angela Merkel called for greater participation of women in politics, in comments published in the weekend issue of the Sueddeutsche Zeitung newspaper.
“We need to work to increase trust in women in general,” said the Christian Democratic politician (CDU). “Because even when there are women, it’s not like they’re arguing about a leadership position for the party.”
“I can only get women to get involved,” she said. “Just having men, it just doesn’t fit the times anymore.”
She said that if a political party wanted to represent the people, it had to move closer to gender equality and have the will to do so.
The conservative bloc CDU/CSU suffered a historic defeat in the German federal elections at the end of September.
Merkel, the country’s first female chancellor, has yet to run again in the election and is set to step down from politics after nearly 16 years in Germany’s presidency.
Armin Laschet, who was the conservative candidate to replace Merkel in the election, announced plans to oversee the CDU’s next steps before stepping down.
The CDU is now seeking to start a special party congress that will elect the entire leadership.
A group of men have been put forward as candidates to succeed Laschet as party leader, including Health Minister Jens Spahn, socially conservative former CDU leader Friedrich Merz, and foreign policy expert Norbert Röttgen.
AOQ