Conservative self-examination

Germany's Christian Democrats, the CDU, are still the strongest national political force in Germany, but this doesn't mean they don't have problems.

On the contrary, the party has been hemorrhaging voter support in recent years. At September's general election last year, it won just 33.8 percent of the vote - the party's worst showing since the Federal Republic was founded in 1949.

During a two-day strategy meeting, which began in Berlin on Thursday, the party intends to analyse what's going wrong.

Its election performance was so poor that it was only due to the good showing of the pro-business Free Democrats that the CDU was able to remain in power, while ending its awkward coalition with the Social Democrats.

A coalition agreement, decided upon within weeks, helped to distract attention for a while from the CDU's increasing difficulty to remain a "people's party," with popular national support.

But now, after a rather bumpy and uncoordinated start to the new government, critics within the party are getting the chance to insist on an honest analysis of the general election results and the consequences for the party's future strategy.

Merkel's leadership role questioned

Pressure has been mounting on Angela Merkel who, as well as being chancellor, is also chairperson of the CDU.

Many members believe she's been keeping too low a profile, failing to speak out on issues such as the future of the Afghanistan mission or the simmering row between the coalition partners on proposed tax cuts.

There's also a widespread feeling that constructive criticism of Merkel's role is being blocked by the leadership.

"It's simply ridiculous to see so many people in our party kowtowing to Chancellor Merkel," says Martin Lohmann, a spokesman for the CDU's Catholic caucus. "Everyone should be reminded that Merkel is the head of an important democratic party in Germany, and not the chairperson of an East German-style state council," Lohmann adds.

New voters, where are you?

Among the criticisms is that Merkel does not take the conservative, Catholic elements of the party, which have traditionally provided the bedrock of its support, seriously enough. She rejects that accusation, but she also believes that wooing new voter groups might help her party out of the doldrums.

In an interview with the German business daily Handelsblatt, she indicated that it was no longer enough just to cater for the party's core followers.

Rather, it was necessary to be on the lookout for support among the many Germans who will no longer be loyal to the same party for their whole lives.

Her view is shared by the party's secretary general, Hermann Groehe.

He says that help may come from disenchanted Social Democrat voters, or those who voted for the Free Democrats last time, in order to prevent a continuation of the unloved grand coalition.

"Looking out for new potential supporters without losing our current ones, is the big challenge facing us," Groehe says.

And no one in the party doubts that something must happen soon to reverse the all-too-clear trend toward dwindling voter support.

Since 2002, the CDU has lost almost four million voters.

hg/KNA/dpa
Editor: Tony Dunham