4 minute read
Covid & New Normal in Governance: A German Perspective
By Peter Rimmele, Resident Representative to India, Konrad Adenauer Stiftung
Around the world, the corona crisis has changed civil services. In one sense it has made them change along similar lines as our service economies, which have had to embrace digitisation and alternative workplace regulations. But the pandemic has also given civil services and government structures on all levels unprecedented powers.
Perhaps the most important change has been the shift towards home office. Wherever this is technically feasible, it has been introduced.
Germany has acquired the dubious reputation of being overly cautious when it comes to innovation. But Covid19 has forced our hand in this regard and surprisingly, the new solutions have proven effective. All levels of government have introduced new work regulations along those lines.
The federal government is entirely in home office mode, while the foreign ministry works shiftwise. The state of Saarland in western Germany has introduced wideranging technical support to create an effective working environment at home. Down at the local level, many city and county bureaucracies have also switched to home office. The southern city of Ulm is sharing its new experiences through a blog, highlighting the fact that we are treading on unchartered territory here.
Earlier, it was believed to be impossible to obtain certain services without a personal appointment, but now, e-governance has rendered this possible in a breathtakingly short amount of time. From tax returns to retirement money to unemployment benefits, a range of services has now been digitised, at least for the time being.
As they say, if radical change is effected long enough, it becomes permanent. It becomes our "New Normal".
Power and police under Covid
There is also another side to it all. The corona crisis heralds the return of the forceful state. Coercive force is a foundation of the modern state. In Germany as also in the wider western world, we have tried to unravel this connection and to mitigate the states’ coercive tendencies.
Over the past 50 years or so, the police, for example, have changed from a violent instrument to upholding order by force into a civil service to provide safety, security and the rule of law for everybody. Now, our civil service has once again been endowed with the task of surveillance and enforcing conformity for the sake of our health rather than our security. In Germany, the specifics of this vary from state to state, as those policing duties fall into the responsibility of the federal states, a situation Indians are undoubtedly well acquainted with. While Bavaria took a hardline approach, which led to the police patrolling public places to ensure social distancing, Berlin was reluctant to sign off on similar measures. Two weeks ago, the city saw a 10,000 strong march against anti-Covid policies. The crowd disregarded every regulation, from social distancing to wearing masks in private to the showing of Nazi symbols. The police finally ordered the dispersal of the demonstration on the ground that public security could no longer be guaranteed. The result is that Germany is now debating a very difficult topic: The powers of the state in contrast to the responsibility of the individual. Is our health and safety a greater good than our freedom of expression?
Undoubtedly, the corona crisis has forced the state to make deep intrusions into civil life, but the measures have so far been carried by majority support. The German government has been at pains to be strong but not an enforcer. Angela Merkel has gone to great lengths to explain that ours was not a curfew but rather "contact restrictions".
The German government is willing to do what is necessary but unwilling to do what might be useful but excessive.
When laxity leads to irresponsibility...
But believing in the responsibility of people becomes problematic if the irresponsibility of some threatens the hard fought gains of the majority. Multiple states, Berlin included, have now reacted to lax adherence to rules and open flaunting of advice, and made the police enforce more hurtful fines against not wearing masks on public transport. But the debate has only just begun and will stay with us for some years to come.
To combat the crisis, the government is expanding and taking over responsibilities it does not usually assume in liberal democracies.
Civil service prospers under the pandemic. While this is probably our best and only answer to the current crisis, we should always remain vigilant. Because what is true for the very few advantages of this pandemic, might be even truer for its many repercussions; and I reiterate: If radical change is affected long enough, it becomes permanent. It might become our “New Normal”.
To watch the full interaction and Mr. Peter Rimmele's talk, check out the latest edition of Business Mandate.
