Overview

• Bundestag Vice President Bodo Ramelow of Die Linke urged replacing the anthem and holding a public vote on the black-red-gold flag.
• He proposed putting Bertolt Brecht's "Kinderhymne" to a national vote as a potential new anthem.
• He said he would seek to use Article 146 of the Basic Law to enable a popular decision on these questions.
• Ramelow argued that many East Germans do not embrace the current anthem and said some citizens feel uneasy about the national flag despite its anti-totalitarian symbolism.
• The initiative revives a proposal he made in 2019 as Thuringia’s minister-president that prompted a broad public discussion.