German interior minister divides opinion by suggesting country should observe Muslim holidays

Christian Democratic politicians were upset with the suggestion

The federal interior minister of Germany, Thomas de Maizière, suggested Monday that parts of Germany with substantial Muslim populations could have public holidays during Muslim festivals.

“I’m prepared to talk about whether we would also introduce Muslim public holidays,” de Maizière said.

He drew attention to the fact that there are several Catholic holidays, such as All Saints day, which are only celebrated in Catholic-dominated parts of the country.



“Why shouldn’t we think about a Muslim public holiday in parts of the country where many Muslims live?” he questioned.

However, the Christian Democratic (CDU) politician maintained that public holidays in Germany are influenced by Christianity and that it should generally stay this way.

Currently, nine public holidays are observed in the entire country. However, the southern state of Bavaria has a total of 13 days off, as it celebrates a few additional Catholic holidays.

The interior minister made the suggestion while speaking at a campaign event for upcoming state elections in Lower Saxony. There the CDU are polling in close competition with the Social Democrats to be the largest party in the state parliament.

CDU leader in Lower Saxony, Bernd Althusmann, seemed unamused by de Maizière’s timing.

“Public holidays have a long tradition in Germany, I don’t see any need for a change to the current system. I don’t think a discussion about religious holidays during election campaigning is appropriate,” he said.



Meanwhile, the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) responded angrily to the interior minister’s suggestion.

Party deputy leader Beatrix von Storch tweeted, “The CDU wants Muslim holidays - that is the difference to the AfD. We say NO NO NO to that!”

But the Social Democrats seemed more accepting. Sawsan Chebli, a Berlin politician for the SPD, said “I find the idea good. In Berlin there are already regulations for Ramadan and Eid.”

This story originally appeared on The Local.