The fact is, we’re all aware that many marriages in the Western world don’t last. In consequence, some of us are avoiding marriage altogether, others are waiting longer before getting hitched. German politician Gabriele Pauli proposes something different.
Last week German politician Gabriele Pauli shocked her country by suggesting that marriage should automatically dissolve after seven years, at which point couples would have to decide whether to extend their union or not. With numbers suggesting that almost 38 percent of Germans who marry today are likely to get divorced, Pauli believes that putting a time constraint on the sacrament of holy matrimony would save many people the trouble of filing the divorce papers.
The idea is an interesting one but whether Germany and the rest of the world is ready for it, is less certain. Pauli isn’t concerned. Standing for leadership of Bavaria’s Christian Social Union (CSU), she accuses her party, known for promoting traditional family values, of holding onto ideals of marriage which are no longer relevant. Pauli sees her role as one of “bringing ideas into the CSU and starting a discussion,” she told German television in response to the criticism from her colleagues. European lawmaker Ingo Freidrich dismissed her views as “diametrically contradicting our Christian, ethical values.” Peter Ramsauer, head of the CSU in Germany’s parliament, compared Pauli’s ideas to “the dirt under your fingernails.” (Reuters). Ouch!
But Pauli seems poised and ready to shake up her male-dominated and mainly Catholic party, a party which has been at the forefront of Bavarian politics since the Second World War. Twice divorced herself, Pauli is definitely Germany’s most flamboyant and fun politician. A red-headed motorcyclist, she posed for a magazine wearing long black latex gloves. Viewed as the party rebel, she has almost no chance of winning next week’s leadership vote. But she’s certainly doing her best to make the race interesting. She initially emerged from the shadows by declaring that Premier Edmund Stoiber, who’s been at the helm of the CSU for almost 14 years now, should step down. Stoiber made things worse by getting caught snooping for personal dirt on Pauli. Lo and behold, the political wheels started turning., and Stoiber found himself encouraged to step down as leader. Pauli may have no chance at official leadership, but with her PhD in political science and her if-it-don’t-work-then-fix-it ideas, she may be providing German politics with a badly needed breath of fresh air.
This article was published Sunday, September 30, 2007.
