In an interview with German newsmagazine Der Spiegel, Jörg Schönbohm, the interior minister of the eastern German state of Brandenburg, rehashed demands for a so-called German Leitkultur, or leading culture, which had been at the center of a heated debate several years ago. "Anyone who comes here has to accept the German leading culture," said Schönbohm, a member of the CSU's sister party, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU). He added that Germans share a common language, values and laws. "We cannot allow foreigners to destroy this common basis," he said. Conservatives should also pay more attention to patriotism and Christian values to prevent voters from shifting to right-wing extremist parties as happened in recent state elections, he added.
Bavarian Interior Minister GÃŒnther Beckstein agreed with Schönbohm's calls for a leading culture. "Multi-culturalism, as propagated by the red-green (German government) for years, has proven to be illusionary," he said. German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder meanwhile also called on Muslims to better integrate themselves in German society. Schröder warned of a "conflict of cultures" and said Muslims "must clearly and without misunderstanding demonstrate that they accept our legal order and democratic rules." He said that the state had to insist on the fact that "our willingness to integrate corresponds to a willingness to be integrated on the part of those who come here." In his speech, to be delivered later on Saturday when Berlin's Jewish museum offers a tolerance prize to former President Johannes Rau, Schröder emphasized the importance for foreigners living in Germany to learn the language. "Without linguistic abilities, no integration and no dialogue can take place," he said.