Inge Höger

Inge Höger (2012)

Inge Höger (born October 29, 1950 in Diepholz) is a German politician. She represents the state of North Rhine-Westphalia in the Bundestag. From 2005 to 2006 she was deputy chairman of The Left.

Career

After attending elementary school and business school in Rahde she trained as a forwarding agent from 1967 to 1969. She graduated from the Bremen University of Applied Sciences in 1973 with a degree in Business Administration (FH). From 1994 onwards she worked in various companies in accounting and worked in the management of the AOK in Herford. From 1993 to 2005, she was chair of the Women's Committee of the DGB. She is also a member of Attac.

Party

She became a founding member of the WASG in June 2005 and was also a member of the Left Party.[1] Since 2006 she has been patron of the WASG-related education community.

Member of the Bundestag

Since 2005, Inge Höger has been a member of the Bundestag.[2] At the 2009 election, she unsuccessfully contested the Herford – Minden-Lübbecke II constituency, but was elected from the North Rhine Westphalia land list.

Gaza flotilla

At the end of May 2010, together with Annette Groth and Norman Paech, she accompanied a controversial international relief (and islamist Turkish government organized) convoy in the Free Gaza Movement.[3] In her descriptions, Höger said "We felt like we were in a war, like we were being kidnapped.…Nobody had a weapon."[4] She further stated that:

Later, the Israeli soldiers let us go outside, one by one.…We were checked and our personal belongings were taken away. Then we were handcuffed with cable retainers and brought to the upper deck.…They were obviously looking for weapons. They raided and slashed all the suitcases of all passengers and everything was all over the place.[5]

Criticism of Israel

Höger is noted for her positions against Israeli policies as well as accusations of anti-semitism.[6][7][8] The situation was included in a study by antisemitism expert Charles A. Small.[9]

Benjamin Krüger, a coworker of Frank Tempel, has stated he feels Höger's views are an extremely partisan anti-Israel position that he claims serves various antisemitic prejudices.[10] Krüger claims Höger focuses on anti-Israel stances, causing the neglect of her post as Die Linke defence representative. [10]

In 2011, Höger claimed that Juliano Mer-Khamis and Vittorio Arrigoni, two noted pro-Palestine activists, (who are acknowledged by Hamas to have been killed by Palestinians[11][12][13][14] ) were actually killed by Israel. Writing on her website, Höger wrote: “The question one must pose is: Who profits from this terrible crime? First of all, now two of the activists most ‘dangerous’ for Israel, because they were the most engaged, wellknown and noted, are eliminated". In Germany, Höger has been accused of anti-semitism in relation to these and other statements.

Volker Beck, a German Green Party MP and spokesman for the party on human rights, said “Inge Höger’s wild conspiracy theory is pure speculation, without any concrete factual basis.…She employs the centuries-old image of the perfidiously murderous Jews."[13] The German newspaper Die Welt called Höger a “flawless anti-Semite” because of her "anti-Jewish statements".[13]

International recognition

Höger was brought to attention in Sweden when she was featured in an article by the Swedish newspaper ETC, due to her name meaning "No right" (right as in a political spectrum) in Swedish.[15]

References

  1. ↑ "Inge Höger" (in German). The Left (Germany). Retrieved April 27, 2011.
  2. ↑ "Inge Höger, DIE LINKE" [Inge Höger, The Left Party] (in German). Deutscher Bundestag. Retrieved April 27, 2011.
  3. ↑ "Reuters Pictures". Daylife. June 1, 2010. Retrieved April 27, 2011. Matthias Joachim, Annette Groth, Norman Paech, Inge Hoeger and Nader el Sakka (L-R) of the left-wing Die Linke party who were on board of a Gaza-bound aid flotilla, pose for the media after a news conference upon their return from Israel, at the lower house of parliament at the Reichstag in Berlin June 1, 2010.
  4. ↑ "Witnesses tell of Gaza raid". The Age. June 2, 2010. Retrieved April 27, 2011.
  5. ↑ Becatoros, Elena; Suzan Fraser (June 1, 2010). "Activists on Gaza aid flotilla talk of beatings, stun guns during raid by Israeli forces". Telegraph-Journal. Retrieved April 27, 2011.
  6. ↑ Das Problem einer Linken mit lebenden Juden, Die Welt, 13. Mai 2011
  7. ↑ Ja, es gibt Antisemiten bei uns, Der Spiegel, 27. Juni 2011
  8. ↑ Die Linke und die Juden: Zwischen Antizionismus und Antisemitismus Befreiung aus dem Kerker des Israel-Hasses
  9. ↑ Charles A. Small: Global Antisemitism: A Crisis of Modernity, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, 02.12.2013
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Jungle World Nr. 30, July 28th 2011 »Da existiert eine Israel-Obsession« Benjamin Krüger ist Sprecher des Bundesarbeitskreises (BAK) Shalom. Der 28jährige arbeitet als Büroleiter des Bundestagsabgeordneten Frank Tempel (»Die Linke«).
  11. ↑ Associated Press.Gaza police close in on suspects in Vittorio Arrigoni murder. The Guardian. 19 April 2011.
  12. ↑ Issacharoff, Avi. Hamas kills 2 suspects during manhunt for murderers of Italian activist in Gaza.Haaretz. 20 April 2011.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 "PA forces nab Hamas suspect in Mer-Khamis murder". Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 5 April 2011.
  14. ↑ "Jenin militant charged over theatre director murder". Yahoo! News (Jenin). AFP. 6 April 2011. Retrieved 7 April 2011.
  15. ↑ Inge Höger: Nöjd med namnet, ETC, Retrieved 12 April 2015.

External links

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