Discussion Events on the Constitution

On November 4, the Senate will vote on a possible amendment to the Constitution. To introduce new arguments into the debate, public discussion events were held on October 13 and 14, each of which began with two short keynote presentations by external scholars. Science journalist Jan-Martin Wiarda moderated the events. The cafeteria—the venue—was filled with about 400 people on both days. The audience consisted of representatives from all membership groups at the university.

On the first evening, Tuesday, Prof. Dr. Reiner Anselm, Chair of Systematic Theology and Ethics at the University of Munich, and Dr. Annette Barkhaus, Deputy Director of the Research Department at the German Science Council, gave presentations.

Annette Barkhaus outlined upheavals in politics and society, as well as changing scientific conditions, and described the contributions universities can make to ensuring a free, resilient society. Reiner Anselm followed with a discussion of what is necessary for peace beyond defense readiness and how to counter the dynamics of escalation.

In the second part of the evening, the guests discussed in randomly formed groups of four the question of what serves the cause of peace. The feedback was incorporated into Wednesday’s event.

The keynote speakers on the second day were Dr. Max Mutschler, Senior Researcher at the Bonn International Centre for Conflict Studies, and Prof. Dr. Jan C. Behrends, Professor of Democracy and Dictatorship at European University Viadrina. While Max Mutschler argued that research with military applications should be approved only in exceptional cases, Jan Behrends emphasized academic freedom from an institutional perspective and, from a geopolitical perspective, pointed to the situation in Eastern European countries that felt threatened by Russia.

Numerous members of the university took advantage of a subsequent fishbowl discussion to make their positions clear.