Christian Schwarz-Schilling
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Christian Schwarz-Schilling (born 19 November 1930) is an
Austrian Austrian may refer to: * Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent ** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen, see Austrian nationality law * Austrian German dialect * Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ...
-born
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...
politician, entrepreneur, philanthropist and media and telecommunications innovator who served as
High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina The High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina, together with the Office of the High Representative (OHR) in Bosnia and Herzegovina, were created in 1995 immediately after the signing of the Dayton Agreement which ended the 1992–1995 Bosn ...
from 1 February 2006 until 30 June 2007 and as the 2nd
European Union Special Representative The European Union Special Representatives (EUSR) are emissaries of the European Union with specific tasks abroad. While the EU's ambassadors are responsible for affairs with a single country, Special Representatives tackle specific issues, conf ...
for
Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...
during the same period. He was born in
Innsbruck Innsbruck (; bar, Innschbruck, label=Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian ) is the capital of Tyrol (state), Tyrol and the List of cities and towns in Austria, fifth-largest city in Austria. On the Inn (river), River Inn, at its junction with the ...
, the son of the composer
Reinhard Schwarz-Schilling Reinhard Schwarz-Schilling (9 May 1904 in Hannover – 9 December 1985 in Berlin) was a German composer. The son of a chemical manufacturer, Schwarz-Schilling embarked upon his musical studies in 1922, first in Munich and – interrupted by sev ...
and is married to the author Marie-Luise Schwarz-Schilling with whom he has two children.


Professional career

In 1950, Schwarz-Schilling got his
Abitur ''Abitur'' (), often shortened colloquially to ''Abi'', is a qualification granted at the end of secondary education in Germany. It is conferred on students who pass their final exams at the end of ISCED 3, usually after twelve or thirteen year ...
at the Ernst-Moritz-Arndt Gymnasium in
Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
. He continued to study
History History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the History of writing#Inventions of writing, invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbr ...
and
East Asia East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The modern states of East Asia include China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan. China, North Korea, South Korea and ...
n Languages and Culture at the
Ludwig Maximilian University The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (simply University of Munich or LMU; german: Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München) is a public research university in Munich, Germany. It is Germany's sixth-oldest university in continuous operatio ...
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 ...
. In 1956 he was granted a
Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is a ...
for his thesis on Chinese History, "Der Friede von Shan-Yüan 1005 n. Chr. und seine Auswirkungen auf die Beziehungen zwischen dem Chinesischen Reich und dem Liao-Reich der Kitan" (The Peace of Shan Yuan 1005 AD, and its Effects on the Relations between the Chinese Empire and the Liao-Empire of Kitan). In 1957, he became manager of the battery manufacturer Accumulatorenfabrik Sonnenschein in
Büdingen Büdingen is a town in the Wetteraukreis, in Hesse, Germany. It is mainly known for its well-preserved, heavily fortified medieval town wall and half-timbered houses. Geography Location Büdingen is in the south of the Wetterau below the Vogelsb ...
in
Hesse Hesse (, , ) or Hessia (, ; german: Hessen ), officially the State of Hessen (german: links=no, Land Hessen), is a States of Germany, state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt. Two other major histor ...
, which he remained until 1982. 1993-2002 he was CEO of Dr. Schwarz-Schilling & Partner GmbH, his own telecommunications consultancy in Büdingen. In 1971, he became a member of the Television Council of the
ZDF ZDF (, short for Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen; ; "Second German Television") is a German public-service television broadcaster based in Mainz, Rhineland-Palatinate. It is run as an independent nonprofit institution, which was founded by all fe ...
, one of Germany's two public service TV stations, which he left in 1982. Between 1975 and 1983 he was chairman of the coordination council for Media Politics of the
CDU/CSU CDU/CSU, unofficially the Union parties (german: Unionsparteien, ) or the Union, is a centre-right Christian-democratic political alliance of two political parties in Germany: the Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU) and the Christian Soc ...
.


Political career

During this period he began to form an interest in regional politics, joining the Christian Democratic Union in 1960. In 1964, he joined the regional board of the CDU in Hesse. In 1966, Schwarz-Schilling was elected into the regional parliament of Hesse and in 1967 he became the general secretary of the CDU in Hesse. Since 1971, Schwarz-Schilling became involved in national politics, becoming member of several councils. In 1976 Schwarz-Schilling was elected into the
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 ...
and remained a member until 2002. During this time he served as the
vice-chairman The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the group ...
of the Small Business Union of the
CDU/CSU CDU/CSU, unofficially the Union parties (german: Unionsparteien, ) or the Union, is a centre-right Christian-democratic political alliance of two political parties in Germany: the Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU) and the Christian Soc ...
between 1977 and 1997. In 1979, he became president of the Executive Bureau of the European Small Business Union, which he left in 1982. Between 1981 and 1982, he was
chairperson The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...
of the Research Committee on New Information and Communication Technology of the Bundestag furthering innovative communications technology. In 1982, he was appointed
Federal Minister for Post and Communication Federal or foederal (archaic) may refer to: Politics General *Federal monarchy, a federation of monarchies *Federation, or ''Federal state'' (federal system), a type of government characterized by both a central (federal) government and states or ...
, in the
first Kohl cabinet The First Kohl cabinet (German: Kabinett Kohl I) was the 13th Cabinet of the Federal Republic of Germany. It was sworn in on 4 October 1982 following a successful constructive vote of no confidence, by which Helmut Kohl replaced Helmut Schmidt as ...
. Before his appointment, he was He retained his post for the next three cabinets Kohl, Schwarz-Schilling was never part of Kohl's inner circle and is, by some, regarded as unremarkable minister. Others see him as cabinet minister who pursued a long-term strategy of modernisation and actually got things done. Under his ministry cable television was introduced in Germany and commercial television was allowed to broadcast. Deutsche Post was privatised, including its Telecom business. Schwarz-Schilling also introduced GSM nationwide. He was instrumental in pushing the GSM-project of France, Germany and Italy forward both technically and politically. He was responsible for letting the UK become part of it. This culminated in the Bonn declaration of 1987. By the time he left office, Germany had one of the most modern communications infrastructures in the world. In 1992, Schwarz-Schilling resigned his post in anger at Germany's inaction over atrocities in the then
Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
— rebuffing Chancellor Kohl's protestations that Germany's post-war constitution barred it from stepping in. He told the Chancellor he was "ashamed" to belong to such a government, saying he had entered politics in the first place to ensure that atrocities like those perpetrated by the
Nazis Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Na ...
"never happen again." The
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 ...
daily Sueddeutsche Zeitung later commented that "most notable act in office was leaving it". As Yugoslavia lurched into chaos, Schwarz-Schilling began to try to mediate between the factions — a role later formalised in the
Washington agreement The Washington Agreement ( Croatian: ''washingtonski sporazum'' and Bosnian: ''vašingtonski sporazum'') was a ceasefire agreement between the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Croatian Republic of Herzeg-Bosnia, signed in Washington ...
of 1994, and which he held until 2004. During and after the war, Schwarz-Schilling travelled around the country, trying to resolve disputes and later overseeing the return of some of the 2.2 million refugees — half the population — created by the conflict. . In 1995, he became chairperson of the sub-committee on Human Rights and Humanitarian Aid. In 1998 the sub-committee became a full committee and Schwarz-Schilling became its vice-chairperson, serving until 2002.


Critics

To speed up the cable project, Schwarz-Schilling decided to involve private companies in the cable laying. Sonnenschein KG also had its wife's company involved in the "Projektgesellschaft für Kabel-Kommunikation mbH", where he had been managing director for many years. His shares on the Sonnenschein KG, he resigned only a few hours before his appointment as Postminister. Buyer of these shares was the Nixdorf Group. His decision to use copper, met both at home and abroad to wonder: It was already foreseen in the early 1980s that fiber optic cables are the "technology of the future." During his tenure, Black Schilling was known as "Kohl's most affair rich minister". The trigger for these affairs were usually the complications of his wife's family business in Schwarz-Schilling's political decisions. Among the employees of the Deutsche Bundespost Schwarz-Schilling was anything but popular, as he was the last Postminister before privatization. So there was a joke among the staff: What does Schwarz-Schilling do when he comes to the office in the morning? He does the post.


International political career

On 14 December 2005 he was confirmed to replace Lord Ashdown both as the
High Representative The High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy (HR/VP) is the chief co-ordinator and representative of the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) within the European Union (EU). The position is currently held b ...
(OHR) — a post created by the 1995
Dayton Agreement The General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, also known as the Dayton Agreement or the Dayton Accords ( Croatian: ''Daytonski sporazum'', Serbian and Bosnian: ''Dejtonski mirovni sporazum'' / Дејтонски мир ...
— and as the EU's special representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina. On 31 January 2006 he was appointed as such. Schwarz-Schilling was nominated by the
Bosniak The Bosniaks ( bs, Bošnjaci, Cyrillic: Бошњаци, ; , ) are a South Slavic ethnic group native to the Southeast European historical region of Bosnia, which is today part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, who share a common Bosnian ancestry, cu ...
and
Bosnian Serb The Serbs of Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sr-Cyrl, Срби у Босни и Херцеговини, Srbi u Bosni i Hercegovini) are one of the three constitutive nations (state-forming nations) of the country, predominantly residing in the politi ...
presidents. He has cast his role as that of "advisor" to the country who wants to "listen to the people" — in contrast to his predecessor Ashdown, who attracted criticism particularly from Bosnian Serbs for relying too heavily on his Bonn-powers to force through legislation and sack elected officials. Under Schwarz-Schilling, the OHR seemed to soften its invasiveness, thanks to pressures from the
Council of Europe The Council of Europe (CoE; french: Conseil de l'Europe, ) is an international organisation founded in the wake of World War II to uphold European Convention on Human Rights, human rights, democracy and the Law in Europe, rule of law in Europe. ...
and a growing EU involvement. The number of OHR legislative initiatives and of dismissed officials lowered. The EU decision to shut down the OHR by June 2007 unexpectedly arose disappointment and concern in the Bosnian population, NGOs, and politicians.Giulio Venneri
''Modelling States from Brussels?'', December 2007
During his time in office, nationwide research by Oxford Research International, which Schwarz-Schilling oversaw, showed that the silent majority of Bosnia and Herzegovina was significantly more tolerant and forward-looking than the politicians who represented them. It also showed that several policies implemented by national politicians and the international community were out of step with what the population wanted. Slovak diplomat
Miroslav Lajčák Miroslav Lajčák (born 20 March 1963) is a Slovak politician and diplomat, former Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Slovak Republic. In addition, Lajčak also served as President of the United Nations General Assembly for the 72nd session fr ...
replaced Christian Schwarz-Schilling - who was originally intended to be the last holder of the post - on 30 June 2007.Miroslav Lajčák to succeed Schwarz-Schilling as High Representative
, Office of the High Representative, 11 May 2007, accessed 23 May 2007
Lajčák retook a more intrusive approach in the work of the OHR, making it seem that apparently decreased intrusiveness was mostly due to the "weak personality" of Schwarz-Schilling. However, Schwarz-Schilling remains popular with the Bosnian population.


Trivia

*In 1992, Schwarz-Schilling received the Achievement Cross with Star of the Order of Achievement of the Federal Republic of Germany *In 1995, he became Honorary Doctor of Business Administration of the
Bryant College Bryant University is a private university in Smithfield, Rhode Island. It has two colleges, the College of Arts and Sciences and the College of Business, and is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education. History Butler Exc ...
in Smithfield, USA. *In 2004, he was made an honorary citizen of the town
Büdingen Büdingen is a town in the Wetteraukreis, in Hesse, Germany. It is mainly known for its well-preserved, heavily fortified medieval town wall and half-timbered houses. Geography Location Büdingen is in the south of the Wetterau below the Vogelsb ...
*In 2005, he received the Manfred Wörner Medal for "special meritorious service to peace and freedom in Europe". *In 2007, he received the Hessian Peace Prize for his efforts to end the atrocities in
Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...
during and after the war. * Since 2007, Schwarz-Schilling has been teaching as a professor at Sarajevo School of Science and Technology


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schwarz-Schilling, Christian 1930 births Living people Government ministers of Germany Members of the Bundestag for Hesse Members of the Bundestag 1998–2002 Members of the Bundestag 1994–1998 Members of the Bundestag 1990–1994 Politicians from Innsbruck High Representatives for Bosnia and Herzegovina Knights Commander of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Members of the Landtag of Hesse German people of Jewish descent German Roman Catholics German officials of the European Union Members of the Bundestag for the Christian Democratic Union of Germany Businesspeople from Innsbruck