Farewell, 'Mutti Merkel' or Mother Merkel

Farewell, Mutti:

Tearful Angela Merkel waves goodbye

as her 16-year reign as German chancellor ends

and parliament elects Olaf Scholz as her successor

 

• Angela Merkel's 16-year tenure as German Chancellor ended today with the election of successor Olaf Scholz
• Parliament voted 395-303 to elect Scholz, SPD leader who led the party to victory in September's election
• Scholz then took the oath of office before a handover ceremony with Mrs Merkel at the chancellery in Berlin
• Mrs Merkel thanked Scholz and her staff, before getting into a waiting Audi and waving goodbye - looking emotional as she was driven away from the building for the last time
• Scholz takes power as the head of a pro-EU, liberal coalition whose priorities include encouraging migration, legalising cannabis, mandating Covid jabs and giving 16-year-olds the vote

By CHRIS PLEASANCE FOR MAILONLINE and REUTERS

PUBLISHED: 21:03 AEDT, 8 December 2021 | UPDATED: 04:01 AEDT, 9 December 2021

 

Angela Merkel's 16-year reign as German Chancellor officially came to an end today as parliament elected her successor - Olaf Scholz - before she handed over control of the country to him.

 

An emotional Mrs Merkel was pictured waving goodbye from the window of a black Audi as she was driven away from the chancellery for the last time, thanking her staff and wishing her successor well.

 

'Take ownership of this house and work with it for the good of our country - that is my wish,' Merkel told Scholz, who previously worked as her finance minister before leading his party to victory at September's election.

 

Scholz (left), Merkel's former finance minister, gives her a fist bump outside the chancellery in Berlin as he takes over - telling her that she has 'achieved many things'

 

• Merkel is presented with a bunch of flowers by Scholz during a handover ceremony at the chancellery building, during which she told him 'take ownership of this house and work with it for the good of our country'
•  

 

Angela Merkel is driven away from the German chancellery building today as she departs her post after 16 years, with Olaf Scholz sworn in as the country's new leader

 

 

 

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• Angela Merkel was given a standing ovation in the Bundestag today as she watched from the spectator's gallery while lawmakers elected her successor as German Chancellor

 

The day had begun in the Bundestag as lawmakers voted 395-303 to approve Scholz as the country's new leader, while Mrs Merkel watched from the spectator's gallery because she is no longer an MP.

 

 

From there, Scholz headed to the Bellevue Palace where he met with President Frank-Walter Steinmeier to take the oath of office, pledging to serve the German people and protect the country from harm.

 

Last, he came to the chancellery building itself where he handed a bouquet of flowers to Angela Merkel as she said her goodbyes, before telling him: 'I know from my own experience that it is a moving moment to be elected to this office.'

 

Scholz thanked her for her service, telling her that she had 'achieved great things' before vowing to work towards a 'new beginning' for the country. 'I will do everything to work towards that,' he said.

 

Merkel then drove away from the building in a black Audi, waving out of the windows to photographers as her lengthy term as Chancellor - the second-longest in the country's history - finally came to a close.

 

Scholz now takes power as head of a so-called 'traffic light' coalition that combines his red SPD party with the liberal yellow FDP and the environmentalist Greens.

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Angela Merkel's journey from 'Mädchen' to 'Mutti'

 

As a migrant

Merkel was born in 1954 in Hamburg, Germany. Amid the Cold War, her father moved the family from West Germany to the Deutsche Demokratische Republik (DDR). She described her upbringing in East Germany as ‘comfortable’ because of the lack of control over life decisions.  At times, Merkel has emphasized and hidden her background as an ‘Ossi,’ a term used by West Germans to describe Germans from the East. Scholars attribute Merkel's ability to remain diplomatic and neutral in part to the history of growing up in the DDR and fearing retribution from the Stasi.

 

* Stasi. "The making of Angela Merkel, a German enigma". BBC News.

 

Angela Merkel was first elected in 2005 as the Chancellor of Germany and was reelected three times since then in 2009, 2013, and 2018. She plans to serve as Chancellor until September 2021.

 

Her reputation as 'Mutti Merkel' or Mother Merkel encompasses the idea that she is a dependable and trustworthy figure. The nickname was first introduced as a patronizing term used by her opponents to characterize her as a 'nagging mother. ' Her party and supporters rebranded the name as a term of endearment and honor.

 

 

Angela Merkel, née Angela Dorothea Kasner, (born July 17, 1954, Hamburg, West Germany), German politician who served as chancellor of Germany from 2005 to 2021. She was the first woman to hold that office and the second longest-serving chancellor in German history.

 

*chancellor 1.총장 2.각종 대법관의 칭호 3.수상

 

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"굿바이 무티"…'독일의 부흥' 이끌고 떠난 메르켈 [MBN 종합뉴스]

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Dec 10, 2021

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2mSRihtDhc

 

 

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【 앵커멘트 】
독일의 새 정부가 출범하면서 앙겔라 메르켈 전 총리가 16년 만에 자연인으로 돌아갔습니다.
임기가 끝나는 시점에도 70%가 넘는 지지율로 국민의 사랑을 받으며 '무티', 독일어로 '엄마'란 애칭으로도 불렸죠.
메르켈 전 총리가 남긴 족적과 우리에게 주는 시사점을 박유영 기자가 짚어봤습니다.


【 기자 】
독일 역사상 첫 여성 총리, 첫 동독 출신 총리, 취임 당시 최연소 총리, 그리고 헬무트 콜과 함께 16년간 재임한 최장수 총리.

모두 앙겔라 메르켈이 남긴 기록들입니다.

2005년 취임 당시 검은 정장에 짧은 머리모양 그대로 퇴임한 그는 마지막까지 국민에 대한 신뢰를 강조했습니다.

▶ 인터뷰 : 앙겔라 메르켈 / 독일 전 총리 (지난 2일, 퇴임식)
- "제가 경험한 신뢰에 감사합니다. 정치에서 가장 중요한 자산은 신뢰라는 걸 항상 생각했습니다."

메르켈은 검소한 옷차림과 절제된 언행을 고수하며, 위기마다 부드럽지만 뚝심 있는 리더십을 발휘했습니다.

2008년 글로벌 금융위기 때 4,800억 유로를 은행에 투입해 '뱅크런'을 막았고, 2011년 유로존 위기 땐 파산에 몰린 그리스에 구제금융을 지원하는 대신 고강도 개혁안을 받아냈습니다.

2015년, 시리아 난민이 유럽으로 몰려들자 120만 명 넘는 난민을 수용하는 포용 정책을 펼쳤습니다.

▶ 인터뷰 : 앙겔라 / 독일 전 총리 (2015년)
- "우리에게 오는 모든 사람의 존엄성과 인간성을 대우하는 건 기본적인 이해입니다. 이것이 독일을 상징하는 것입니다."

나치의 유대인 대학살이라는 역사적 비극에 대해 수차례 사죄하기도 했습니다.

취임 당시 11%였던 실업률을 3%로 낮추며 경제 부흥을 이끌어, 임기 말 지지율이 80%에 육박했습니다.

올라프 숄츠 총리에게 자리를 넘긴 메르켈은 평범한 일상을 누리겠다고 밝혔지만, 정치적 자문 역할을 할 거란 전망도 나옵니다.

메르켈은 재임 기간에 노무현, 이명박, 박근혜 전 대통령과 문재인 대통령까지 우리나라 정상 4명과 만나 양국의 현안을 논의했습니다.

MBN뉴스 박유영 입니다. [shine@mbn.co.kr]