Cologne's carnivalists have criticized Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD) for his statements about the crazy time.
“It's a shame how little you, as a Rhinelander, know about the carnival.
Otherwise you would not publicly wish for the carnival activities to be postponed to the summer, ”wrote Christoph Kuckelkorn, President of the Cologne Carnival Festival Committee, in an open letter to Lauterbach, who was born in Düren in the Rhineland.
The carnival is an important and recognized cultural asset, emphasized Kuckelkorn. “And rightly so, because our customs consist of much more than wild parties and rampant alcohol consumption. The carnival is a festival in the annual cycle like Christmas or Easter. Nobody would seriously demand that all Christmas celebrations from the Christmas market to the Christmas mass to the family get-togethers be postponed to summer - not even in times of pandemic. "
Lauterbach had given the carnivalists little hope of a normal session on Thursday in the WDR.
“I cannot imagine that we can hold the carnival.
And it's not a good carnival either, ”Lauterbach explained.
“What kind of carnival is it, where you try to be happy, but where there is always the risk of infecting yourself or others and then possibly having to reckon with a serious illness?” He suggested because of the impending Omicron virus variants wave to relocate the foolish activities to the warm season.
"I would actually prefer a summer carnival," said Lauterbach.
No “moral appeals” desired
The health minister should get out of his "talk show mode" and take the concerns of the carnival seriously, said Kuckelkorn.
"What we need are no further moral appeals, but a clear stance and support for the clubs, artists, hall operators and other service providers who otherwise risk bankruptcy through voluntary refusals."
Kuckelkorn invited the minister to a meeting at the Carnival Museum in Cologne.
There you should talk as soon as possible about prospects for voluntary associations, artists and other affected people.
"Because in the second year of the pandemic, the topic of carnival has literally become a serious matter for many people."