Berlin Funding Scandal: Surveillance, Antisemitism, and Political Pressure Rock Cultural Administration
In the ongoing Berlin funding scandal, new revelations from the parliamentary investigative committee paint a troubling picture of surveillance and political interference within the city’s cultural administration. Long-serving civil servants have reported being monitored by a colleague from the leadership level, raising concerns about the politicization of public service.
The ‘Rottweiler’ and the WhatsApp Message
At the heart of the controversy is a WhatsApp message from Sarah Wedl-Wilson, Berlin’s Senator for Culture and Social Cohesion, to CDU Member of Parliament Christian Goiny. The message, cited by the ‘Tagesspiegel,’ refers to a staff member, Georg Gremske, as having ‘played the Rottweiler.’ This ‘Rottweiler’ was allegedly tasked with accelerating the approval of funding applications against antisemitism, championed by the CDU parliamentary group.
Wedl-Wilson is expected to argue in her May 29 testimony before the investigative committee that her ‘zoological image’ was harmless, noting that Rottweilers are not classified as dangerous breeds in Berlin’s dog laws. However, the context suggests a more sinister interpretation: a top-down directive to pressure civil servants into specific outcomes.
A Daily Battle Against ‘Windmills’
The Senator’s private communications further expose her frustration with the bureaucracy. In a chat with CDU parliamentary group leader Dirk Stettner on June 10, 2025, Wedl-Wilson reportedly wrote: ‘I fight daily against the windmills of the administration, without support from the State Secretary.’ This sentiment, while perhaps a common complaint among politicians, takes on new significance in light of the surveillance allegations.
Civil servants, aware of how politicians perceive and discuss them, were reportedly dismayed to learn of the monitoring. An head of department responsible for funding applications in the Social Cohesion division testified to the committee that the individual named in the ‘Rottweiler’ WhatsApp message was given a ‘monitoring function’ over her and her colleagues. She stated that in her thirty years of service, she had never experienced anything like it, suggesting that the surveillance was intended to hinder the proper execution of official duties.
Politicization and the Threat to Due Diligence
This scandal echoes a similar funding controversy that shook the Federal Ministry of Education and Research last year, where political leadership sought to withdraw funds from scientists who supported a demonstration prematurely deemed antisemitic. Both cases highlight a public conflict between political objectives and administrative due diligence.
The consequences drawn by the political side from the ‘highest urgency’ of combating antisemitism, in the view of civil servants, jeopardized the legality and diligence of state actions. In essence, the politicization of the antisemitism issue is putting the administration under immense stress.
‘Left-wing Antisemite’ Accusations
The situation escalated further with accusations targeting civil servants themselves. Goiny reportedly wrote to the Senator on May 28, 2025, about a civil servant: ‘He is a left-wing antisemite who has long sabotaged our policy in the cultural administration.’ Even State Secretary Oliver Friederici, responsible for Social Cohesion, was accused of ‘sabotage’ by Goiny. Friederici, a former CDU parliamentary group member for 28 years, had transitioned from politics to administration.
These accusations suggest that the ‘enemy’ is no longer just external, but is being sought within the state apparatus itself. This internal conflict raises serious concerns about trust, impartiality, and the potential for politically motivated purges within the public service.
The Role of Georg Gremske
Georg Gremske, identified as one of the Senator’s three personal advisors, holds a doctorate in art history from Potsdam, with a thesis on ‘mapping processes’ through dotted lines in diagrams. The dynamic processes of Berlin’s cultural administration, however, demand a more realistic mapping method, especially when allegations of surveillance and political pressure come to light.
The ongoing investigation by the Berlin House of Representatives’ investigative committee is expected to shed more light on these serious allegations, revealing the true extent of political interference and its impact on the integrity of Berlin’s cultural administration.
Source: https://www.faz.net/aktuell/feuilleton/debatten/ueberwachungsvorwurf-im-berliner-foerdermittelskandal-110849873.html
