SPIEGEL cover story: the tax dispute. The German government not only wants to reintroduce a wealth tax, it also intends to launch further forms of taxation. But the state is making less and less money with them.

“Punishment for Success”

SPIEGEL interview with SAP cofounder and multibillionaire Hasso Plattner, 58, about the possible side-effects of a wealth tax:

“Up-and-coming companies that are not yet making a profit, but whose future prospects are assessed very favourably by the stock market, would no longer be able to survive in Germany. Where would company founders find the money to pay the tax? Promising companies would quickly become candidates for take-overs. As a result, the US economy would be much more dominant than it already is.”

“There Must Be No Taboos”

SPIEGEL interview with head of the German Green party Fritz Kuhn about the taxation chaos in the Red-Green coalition:

“The coalition has made mistakes over the past weeks. … I am sure that the Germans are prepared to accept the inevitable brutal cuts, provided they are given a clear statement: fundamental reforms are necessary if the country is to be made fit again for the future. … We owe it to future generations that we adhere strictly to the policy of a consolidated budget.”

The anti-war chancellor: The attitude of the German chancellor towards involvement in a possible war against Iraq means that German foreign policy is having to steer a difficult course between Iraq, Israel and the United States. Despite all its anti-war statements, Germany may well be dragged into a war against Iraq via its arms deliveries to Israel.

“The Hidden Americans”

Kuwait: The emirate on the Persian Gulf has been shaken by a series of attacks against US troops. Is Washington’s next ally, after Saudi Arabia, threatening to back out? The dilemma faced by the most important Arab front state in the event of a ground offensive by Washington against Iraq is only too obvious: while Kuwait’s memories of its liberation from the yoke of Saddam Hussein are gradually paling after eleven years, resentment is growing among the general public against the American presence in the country.

“Hide and Seek in Baghdad”

The cooperation between the UN arms inspectors and the Iraqi military appears to be working well, but that doesn’t necessarily have to be a good sign. It may be that Saddam Hussein is trying, through his cooperation, to divide the unstable international alliance.

“Latent Risk”

SPIEGEL in-depth interview with the head of Opel, Carl-Peter Forster, about the difficult restructuring of his group, old quality-related sins and new challenges, as well as the question as to what role a car make’s image plays for consumers:

“In the meantime, the quality of our cars has demonstrably improved. … Of course, we’re still having to live with a bad decision taken in the past: Opel didn’t take the diesel boom seriously. … In terms of our model strategy, we’re really stepping on it. … Design has to be augmented by functionality – as with the concept behind the Zafira’s interior design. … It doesn’t seem to make much sense for Fiat to merge with Opel. If Fiat really does sell shares to GM, a different solution is much more likely: Fiat would become one of the group’s brands, just as Opel is in Europe and its British counterpart Vauxhall in England, Saab in Sweden and Daewoo in South Korea.”

“Massive Obstruction”

Islamists: US authorities refuse to give the German judiciary material pertaining to Ramzi Binalshibh for its trial against alleged Islamist terrorist Mounir al-Motassadeq – they would have to reveal classified information.

“Our Man in Vienna”

United Nations: The United Nations atomic energy authority has a problem with ex-informers of the former East German intelligence service. Right in the middle of their tricky Iraq mission, the inspectors are having to admit that they failed to screen their Eastern European staff. The long shadow cast by the East German intelligence service comes at a very inopportune moment for the International Atomic Energy Agency. Since a few days the Agency’s inspectors headed by Hans Blix have been working in Iraq, and Saddam Hussein has always warned the UN against sending intelligence agents into his country disguised as inspectors. However, the IAEA’s lax checks are not confined to the East German staff from the Danube. Staff from other Eastern European countries have not been screened for intelligence involvement either.

“Days of Judgement”

Genocide: 800,000 people were killed in Rwanda, in just 100 days. With the United Nations tribunal so far only having convicted eight defendants, lay judges are now passing judgement on more than 100,000 suspected criminals – in the name of justice and reconciliation. Gacaca is actually the word for “grass”. In pre-colonial times, the villagers congregated on the grass space to sort out their disputes. It was not a question of punishment, but of compensation. Anyone who stole a cow had to replace it. It was a basic form of jurisdiction, concerned with consensus rather than judgement, with the cohesion of the village. Not all the judges are able to read. No one will receive any payment for their work. The barefoot judges are meant to get the silent to talk, persuade those filled with hatred to exercise patience, and encourage murderers to show remorse. Those who confess, can expect their punishment to be reduced by half. Those who confess will have to do five or six years’ community service and will then be free. The World Court in Arusha will probably be in session until 2008. It will pass verdicts on eleven ministers and some three dozen other accountable persons, probably issuing life sentences in prisons that conform to international standards. There will be convictions, but no truth. The Gacacas will allow the victims’ nightmares to become visible. Compared with the stories which one hears in Rwanda and which one prefers not to write down, both these attempts at seeking justice seem awkward, helpless and stumbling.

“It Was a Gold Rush”

Press: For years, German companies have been buying up every Eastern European newspaper they could get hold of. Hundreds of new magazines were created. Now those years of rapid expansion are over. In the Czech Republic alone, 80 percent of the press is in German (and Swiss) hands. Now it is a matter of big money, of market leadership, of all or nothing. Now that the flags have been pinned on the map, the rivals in the Sudeten Mountains and elsewhere are laying into each other with enthusiasm. While the German publishers are eager to consolidate their media campaign – in the hinterland they have already conquered, so to speak – serious domestic competitors are emerging for the first time.

“There’s No Automatic Mechanism for War”

SPIEGEL in-depth interview with French defence minister Michèle Alliot-Marie about the Iraq crisis, building up a European defensive union, and the relationship to Nato:

“We aren’t sympathetic towards Saddam Hussein, that’s quite clear. But it’s not the business of the international community to topple a regime. It is exclusively a matter of removing the weapons of mass destruction, should they exist. That’s all, full stop – even if some of those in Washington may be pursuing other goals. … A pre-emptive war would be in breach of international law. Taking a liberty like that would ultimately justify every possible action, and cast the world into a state of total instability. … I don’t think the defensive union will require as much time as the currency union did. The European Corps has already proved its worth. Next year, the European rapid reaction force is to be ready, with 60,000 troops. And we are developing a whole range of new weapons systems and joint arms projects.”

“Amadeus in the Apocalypse”

Musical culture: Operas and concert halls are seeing turbulent times. With subsidies being cut, audiences growing increasingly older and repertoires becoming encrusted, the classical music industry is under threat. Citizens are already taking to the streets, pessimists even speak of a götterdämmerung. But the scene is, as yet, in high spirits.

“Anaesthesia of the Heart”

SPIEGEL interview with the English comedian John Cleese about English people’s image of Germany, the secret of British humour, and his part in the new James Bond film “Die Another Day”:

“To be honest, I never did understand that negative picture of Germany. Immediately after the war, fine. But today? … Basically, our natural enemies are the French. … Most of the things people do are pretty ridiculous, if you take a closer look. That gives lots of opportunities for humour. But as a rule things stop being funny as soon as hatred is involved as well. … Nowadays we have to entertain 14-year-olds who inevitably have no experience of life, no education and no taste – but who are the most important target group these days. That’s why the focus lies on brute humour. Films of somewhat more demanding wit are hardly made any more.”

“The Wizard of the Genes”

Researchers: Craig Venter is once again causing a stir. The researcher wants to create artificial life. His test-tube microbes are supposed to avert a climatic disaster and solve the world’s energy problems. Ever since he managed to decipher the human genome, faith in the professional visionary has been high. “We are trying to find a molecular definition of life,” he says.

“Hitler Wasn’t Stupid”

Authors: Raul Hilberg is one of the leading Holocaust researchers – but to this day his books have not been published in Israel. In Germany, he has now been awarded his second major prize. He has sought an appropriate style. He writes cold-bloodedly, explains the machinery of death like an engineer. Only occasionally does a tinge of irony seem to sparkle briefly among all the merciless dust, though one scarcely dares hope for it. Hilberg grapples, he is fascinated and at the same time repulsed. Raul Hilberg is difficult to grasp as a person. “The Destruction of the European Jews” has been translated into French, Italian, German, Japanese, Spanish and Romanian, but to this day not into Hebrew. None of his books have been published in Israel. “You are only allowed to deal with Jewish history there,” says Hilberg, “not with the perpetrators. You take a couple of steps and already you come up against the ghetto walls. One would have to climb on top of them, but no one wants that. That’s why Holocaust research has collapsed in Israel,” he says calmly. “They have isolated themselves”.