Peter Gauweiler (born 22 June 1949) is a German lawyer and politician of
Bavaria
Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...
's
Christian Social Union (CSU) who served as a member of the German
Bundestag
The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet") is the German federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people. It is comparable to the United States House of Representatives or the House of Commons ...
from 2002 to 2015, representing the
Munich South district. From 2013 until 2015, he also served as deputy leader of the CSU, under the leadership of chairman
Horst Seehofer
Horst Lorenz Seehofer (born 4 July 1949) is a German politician who served as Minister of the Interior, Building and Community under Chancellor Angela Merkel from 2018 to 2021. A member of the Christian Social Union (CSU), he served as the 18 ...
. He resigned his parliamentary seat and leadership post in 2015 at age 65.
Gauweiler is considered a
Euro-sceptic and made a name with partly successful constitutional complaints against the
euro bailout fund and the
Lisbon Treaty
The Treaty of Lisbon (initially known as the Reform Treaty) is an international agreement that amends the two treaties which form the constitutional basis of the European Union (EU). The Treaty of Lisbon, which was signed by the EU member sta ...
.
Political career
Career in state politics
Gauweiler was born in
Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...
,
Bavaria
Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...
. He joined the CSU in 1968 and held an elected offices from 1972, first in the Munich City Council, and later in the
Bavarian state parliament. In 1987, during Gauweiler’s time as secretary of state in the State Interior Ministry, Bavaria put into effect some of the stiffest
AIDS
Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual m ...
regulations ordered anywhere in the world, including mandatory blood tests for prostitutes, drug addicts, prison inmates, applicants for civil-service jobs and some foreigners seeking residence in Bavaria.
From
1990
File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of Humankind, humanity on Earth, Astroph ...
to
1994
File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which Sinking of the MS Estonia, sank in ...
, Gauweiler served as
Bavaria
Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...
n State Minister for Regional Development and Environment in the government of
Minister-President
A minister-president or minister president is the head of government in a number of European countries or subnational governments with a parliamentary or semi-presidential system of government where they preside over the council of ministers. It ...
Max Streibl
Max Streibl (6 January 1932 – 11 December 1998) was a German politician of the Christian Social Union (CSU) party and the eighth Minister President of Bavaria.
Biography
Streibel was born in Oberammergau in 1932, where his parents owned a h ...
. Most notably during that time, he demanded that the
Party of Democratic Socialism and the
German Communist Party
The German Communist Party (german: Deutsche Kommunistische Partei, ) is a communist party in Germany. The DKP supports left positions and was an observer member of the European Left. At the end of February 2016 it left the European party.
His ...
be outlawed after
German reunification
German reunification (german: link=no, Deutsche Wiedervereinigung) was the process of re-establishing Germany as a united and fully sovereign state, which took place between 2 May 1989 and 15 March 1991. The day of 3 October 1990 when the Ge ...
.
Member of the German Parliament, 2002–2015
Gauweiler first became a member of the German Bundestag in the
2002 elections.
From 2006, Gauweiler served as a member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Chairman of the Sub-Committee on Foreign Cultural and Educational Policies of the German
Bundestag
The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet") is the German federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people. It is comparable to the United States House of Representatives or the House of Commons ...
. In 2009, he accompanied German foreign minister
Frank-Walter Steinmeier
Frank-Walter Steinmeier (; born 5 January 1956) is a German politician serving as President of Germany since 19 March 2017. He was previously Federal Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2005 to 2009 and again from 2013 to 2017, as well as Vice Chan ...
on what was the first visit to
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
by a German foreign minister in 22 years. Along with fellow lawmakers including
Monika Grütters
Monika Grütters (born 9 January 1962) is a German politician of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) who served as Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media in the government of Chancellor Angela Merkel from 2013-2021. She has ...
,
Luc Jochimsen
Lukrezia Luise "Luc" Jochimsen ( ''Lukrezia Schleussinger''; born 1 March 1936), is a German former television journalist and politician of The Left party.
Professional career
Luc Jochimsen was born in Nuremberg, the daughter of a vehicle deal ...
and
Claudia Roth
Claudia Benedikta Roth (born 15 May 1955) is a German politician (Alliance 90/The Greens). She was one of the two party chairs from 2004 to 2013 and previously served as one of the President of the Bundestag, vice presidents of the ''Bundestag'' ...
, Gauweiler traveled to
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
in 2010 to meet with
Ali Larijani
Ali Ardeshir Larijani ( fa, علی لاریجانی, ; born 3 June 1957) is an Iranian conservative politician, philosopher and former military officer in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, who served as the Speaker of the Parliament of Iran ...
,
Manouchehr Mottaki
Manouchehr Mottaki ( fa, منوچهر متکی; born 12 May 1953) is an Iranian politician and diplomat. He was the Iranian minister of foreign affairs. Whilst technically appointed by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, he is considered to be closer to more pr ...
and others; the trip was heavily criticized by international human rights organizations. In 2012, he argued that the German government's gold reserves held in the United States should be repatriated.
Following the
2009 federal elections, Gauweiler was part of the CDU/CSU team in the negotiations with the FDP on a coalition agreement; he joined the working group on foreign affairs, defense and development policy, led by
Franz Josef Jung
Franz Josef Jung (born 5 March 1949) is a German politician of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU). He became Federal Minister of Defence in the Grand coalition cabinet of Angela Merkel on 22 November 2005. In October 2009 he became Ministe ...
and
Werner Hoyer
Werner Hoyer (born 17 November 1951 in Wuppertal) is a German economist and politician of the Free Democratic Party (FDP) who is currently serving as the President of the European Investment Bank.
Education and early career
Hoyer graduated as a ...
. Similarly, he participated in the negotiations on forming a so-called
Grand Coalition
A grand coalition is an arrangement in a multi-party parliamentary system in which the two largest political parties of opposing political ideologies unite in a coalition government. The term is most commonly used in countries where there are t ...
with the SPD following the
2013 federal elections.
In November 2013, Gauweiler was elected deputy chairman of the CSU, in what was widely considered a move to appease the eurosceptic elements within his party. He resigned the post and his seat in the Bundestag on 31 March 2015, about three months before his 65th birthday; he had previously been strongly criticized by CSU leader
Horst Seehofer
Horst Lorenz Seehofer (born 4 July 1949) is a German politician who served as Minister of the Interior, Building and Community under Chancellor Angela Merkel from 2018 to 2021. A member of the Christian Social Union (CSU), he served as the 18 ...
for voting against the extension of financial aid for
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...
. After his resignation he was immediately invited to become "a top official", by one report, in the euro-skeptic
Alternative für Deutschland
Alternative for Germany (german: link=no, Alternative für Deutschland, AfD; ) is a right-wing populist
*
*
*
*
*
*
* political party in Germany. AfD is known for its opposition to the European Union, as well as immigration to Germany. I ...
(AfD) party but he declined the invitation. The same report speculated that the resignation would cause Chancellor
Angela Merkel
Angela Dorothea Merkel (; ; born 17 July 1954) is a German former politician and scientist who served as Chancellor of Germany from 2005 to 2021. A member of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), she previously served as Leader of the Oppo ...
more difficulty by removing a protector of her right political flank in the parliament.
Euroscepticism
Over many years, Gauweiler has led several attempts to have the German constitutional court block measures that he considers enhance the EU’s powers at the cost of national sovereignty. Although his legal cases have generally failed, he has gained support from conservative voters, including members of the eurosceptic AfD party.
In 1992, Gauweiler described the
Maastricht Treaty
The Treaty on European Union, commonly known as the Maastricht Treaty, is the foundation treaty of the European Union (EU). Concluded in 1992 between the then-twelve member states of the European Communities, it announced "a new stage in the ...
as a "totalitarian dream", and called its key component, a common currency by 1999, as "Esperanto money". In 2008, he challenged the German ratification of the
Treaty of Lisbon
The Treaty of Lisbon (initially known as the Reform Treaty) is an international agreement that amends the two treaties which form the constitutional basis of the European Union (EU). The Treaty of Lisbon, which was signed by the EU member sta ...
, claiming that the treaty was unconstitutional. He launched a similar challenge to the
European Constitution
The Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe (TCE; commonly referred to as the European Constitution or as the Constitutional Treaty) was an unratified international treaty intended to create a consolidated constitution for the European U ...
in 2005, but the
Federal Constitutional Court of Germany
The Federal Constitutional Court (german: link=no, Bundesverfassungsgericht ; abbreviated: ) is the supreme constitutional court for the Federal Republic of Germany, established by the constitution or Basic Law () of Germany. Since its inc ...
made no ruling and a presidential signature was never given. In 2008, he challenged the Treaty of Lisbon before the constitutional court, saying that the proposed reforms of the EU would undermine the independence of the German Parliament and clash with the German Constitution.
Gauweiler has also been among the most aggressive challengers of the
European Central Bank
The European Central Bank (ECB) is the prime component of the monetary Eurosystem and the European System of Central Banks (ESCB) as well as one of seven institutions of the European Union. It is one of the world's Big Four (banking)#Intern ...
's efforts to rescue the Euro at the Constitutional Court. In 2011, together with a group of academics, he unsuccessfully asked the court to block the country’s participation in the
bail-out packages for Greece and in the
European Financial Stability Facility
The European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) is a special purpose vehicle financed by members of the eurozone to address the European sovereign-debt crisis. It was agreed by the Council of the European Union on 9 May 2010, with the objecti ...
, the predecessor of the
European Stability Mechanism
The European Stability Mechanism (ESM) is an intergovernmental organization located in Luxembourg City, which operates under public international law for all eurozone member states having ratified a special ESM intergovernmental treaty. It was ...
. In 2012, Gauweiler filed a complaint against the ESM and included opposition to a
banking license
A banking licence is a legal prerequisite for a financial institution that wants to carry on a banking business. Under the laws of most jurisdictions, a business is not permitted to carry words like a ''bank'', ''insurance'', ''national'' in th ...
for the bailout fund. Gauweiler claimed that the ECB's bond-buying program threatened Germany with unlimited losses, arguing that it is an additional ground to reject use of German tax revenue for the rescue fund. He managed to convince a majority of justices on the court's second senate that the ECB's program to save the European common currency was contrary to
European Union law
European Union law is a system of rules operating within the member states of the European Union (EU). Since the founding of the European Coal and Steel Community following World War II, the EU has developed the aim to "promote peace, its valu ...
. The judges subsequently referred the case onward to the
European Court of Justice
The European Court of Justice (ECJ, french: Cour de Justice européenne), formally just the Court of Justice, is the supreme court of the European Union in matters of European Union law. As a part of the Court of Justice of the European Un ...
in Luxembourg, a first for the German court.
On 27 January 2015 Gauweiler voted against the
Merkel government’s proposal for a four-month extension of Greece's bailout; in doing so, joining 29 dissenters from the CDU/CSU parliamentary group who expressed scepticism as to whether the Greek government under
Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
Alexis Tsipras
Alexis Tsipras ( el, Αλέξης Τσίπρας, ; born 28 July 1974) is a Greek politician serving as Leader of the Official Opposition since 2019. He served as Prime Minister of Greece from 2015 to 2019.
Tsipras has led the Coalition of th ...
could be trusted to deliver on its reform pledges.
Pro-Russia stance
Gauweiler showed an early understanding for Russia's territorial claims against Ukraine. In September 2014, Gauweiler referenced a letter from
Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
Aleksandr Isayevich Solzhenitsyn. (11 December 1918 – 3 August 2008) was a Russian novelist. One of the most famous Soviet dissidents, Solzhenitsyn was an outspoken critic of communism and helped to raise global awareness of political repress ...
to
Boris Yeltsin
Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin ( rus, Борис Николаевич Ельцин, p=bɐˈrʲis nʲɪkɐˈla(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ ˈjelʲtsɨn, a=Ru-Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin.ogg; 1 February 1931 – 23 April 2007) was a Soviet and Russian politician wh ...
in 1991, in which Solzhenitsyn referred to ''Novorossiya'' ("New Russia") and many other areas of Ukraine beyond the Dnieper River as historically never belonging to Ukraine.
During the annexation of Crimea by Russia in March 2014, Gauweiler criticized the behavior of the German government towards Russia. He described demands for economic sanctions and increased troop presence as "saber rattling" and "dangerous posturing." The United States and the European Union had brought Germany "into a dangerous escalation of threats." According to Gauweiler, the West had ignored and constantly frustrated Russia after the fall of the Iron Curtain.
In March 2014, Gauweiler stated on behalf of his party: "We are for partnership. We are for partnership with Kyiv, but Moscow belongs just as much to Europe and we will not allow European Russia to be excluded by Kyiv, by others. We are for cooperation with Russia." Gauweiler called for a return of German policy to the "wisdom" of
Franz Josef Strauss
Franz Josef Strauss ( ; 6 September 1915 – 3 October 1988) was a German politician. He was the long-time chairman of the Christian Social Union in Bavaria (CSU) from 1961 until 1988, member of the federal cabinet in different positions between ...
and approvingly quoted his statement: "Whenever Germany and Russia had good relations, it was always good for Europe."
On September 12, 2014, Gauweiler traveled to Moscow to open the "Year of Language and Literature in Russia and Germany" as chairman of the Bundestag subcommittee on foreign cultural and educational policy. During his visit, he criticized the sanctions policy against Russia. He said that it was a cowardly policy that was going in the wrong direction. Experiences in Iran and Iraq had shown that such punitive measures did not work. It was necessary to build bridges and talk to each other. "Russia belongs to Europe! Sanctions are the wrong way."
In February 2023, Gauweiler was one of the initial signers of a petition calling for an end to military support to
Ukraine
Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
in the wake of the
2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. An ...
.
Legal practice
From 1996 to 2019, Gauweiler was a partner in the law firm Bub, Gauweiler & Partner in Munich. Among other high-profile cases, the firm represented Gauweiler’s friend and onetime media mogul
Leo Kirch
Leo Kirch (21 October 1926 – 14 July 2011) was a German media entrepreneur who founded the Kirch Group.
Life
Kirch was born in Volkach, Bavaria, but shortly afterward his family moved to the nearby town of Würzburg. After completing high s ...
in a multibillion-dollar lawsuit against
Deutsche Bank
Deutsche Bank AG (), sometimes referred to simply as Deutsche, is a German multinational investment bank and financial services company headquartered in Frankfurt, Germany, and dual-listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and the New York Sto ...
. Notable clients also included the
Government of Qatar
The political system of Qatar is a semi-constitutional monarchy with the emir as head of state and chief executive, and the prime minister as the head of government. Under the Constitution of Qatar, the partially-elected Consultative Assembly has ...
,
Wirecard
Wirecard AG is an insolvent German payment processor and financial services provider whose former CEO, COO, two board members, and other executives have been arrested or otherwise implicated in criminal proceedings. In June 2020, the company ann ...
and
M. M. Warburg & Co.
In 2021, ''
Süddeutsche Zeitung
The ''Süddeutsche Zeitung'' (; ), published in Munich, Bavaria, is one of the largest daily newspapers in Germany. The tone of SZ is mainly described as centre-left, liberal, social-liberal, progressive-liberal, and social-democrat.
History ...
'' revealed that Gauweiler had been receiving consultancy fees amounting to more than eleven million euros by
eurosceptic
Euroscepticism, also spelled as Euroskepticism or EU-scepticism, is a political position involving criticism of the European Union (EU) and European integration. It ranges from those who oppose some EU institutions and policies, and seek reform ...
billionaire
August von Finck during his time in parliament.
[Roman Deininger, Andreas Glas and Klaus Ott (March 25, 2021)]
Mehr als elf Millionen Euro für Gauweiler
''Süddeutsche Zeitung
The ''Süddeutsche Zeitung'' (; ), published in Munich, Bavaria, is one of the largest daily newspapers in Germany. The tone of SZ is mainly described as centre-left, liberal, social-liberal, progressive-liberal, and social-democrat.
History ...
''.
Other activities
*
Goethe-Institut
The Goethe-Institut (, GI, en, Goethe Institute) is a non-profit German cultural association operational worldwide with 159 institutes, promoting the study of the German language abroad and encouraging international cultural exchange and ...
, Delegate to the General Meeting
Publications
* mit
Christian Ude
Christian Ude (born 26 October 1947) is a German politician who served as mayor of Munich from 1993 to 2014. He is a member of the German Social Democratic Party.
Career
Ude was born in Munich. From 1967 to 1969 he worked for the daily newspap ...
: ''Briefwechsel''. Prinzedition in Keyser Verlag, Berlin 2009, .
* mit Christian Ude: ''Briefwechsel zwei''. Prinzedition in Keyser Verlag, Berlin 2010, .
* mit Christian Ude: ''Briefwechsel drei''. Prinzedition in Keyser Verlag, Berlin 2011, .
* mit Christian Ude: ''Briefwechsel vier''. Prinzedition in Keyser Verlag, Berlin 2012, .
* ''
Bernhard von Gudden
Johann Bernhard Aloys von Gudden (7 June 1824 – 13 June 1886) was a German neuroanatomist and psychiatrist born in Kleve.
Career
In 1848, von Gudden earned his doctorate from the University of Halle and became an intern at the asylum in Siegbu ...
und die Entmündigung und Internierung König Ludwigs des Zweiten aus juristischer Sicht''. In:
Hanns Hippius und Reinhard Steinberg (Hrsg.): Bernhard von Gudden. Springer, Berlin 2007, S. 93-107, .
References
External links
Peter Gauweiler personal website
German Bundestag
Dr. Peter GauweilerDr. Peter Gauweiler, Official Facebook fan page
Spiegel International article on how Dr. Peter Gauweiler has persuaded Germany's highest court to restrict the scope and implementation of the Lisbon Treaty.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gauweiler, Peter
1949 births
Living people
Politicians from Munich
German Lutherans
Members of the Bundestag for Bavaria
Ministers of the Bavaria State Government
Members of the Landtag of Bavaria
Recipients of the Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
Members of the Bundestag 2013–2017
Members of the Bundestag 2009–2013
Members of the Bundestag 2005–2009
Members of the Bundestag 2002–2005
Members of the Bundestag for the Christian Social Union in Bavaria