BERLIN (DPA, CONVERSEER) – Flags were flying at half-mast at the German parliament on Monday in honour of late conservative politician and trailblazer Rita Süssmuth.
Süssmuth, a women’s rights activist, former parliamentary speaker and prominent member of the government of ex-chancellor Helmut Kohl, passed away aged 88 on Sunday.
A member of Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s Christian Democrats (CDU), Süssmuth served in the Bundestag – Germany’s lower house of parliament – from 1987 to 2002 and served as its president, or speaker, from 1988 to 1998.
Süssmuth was particularly committed to the equal participation of women in politics, work life and society.
German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier ordered parliament to pay tribute to Süssmuth’s achievements as part of an official ceremony, a rare honour often bestowed on heads of state and government.
Following her passing, Steinmeier hailed Süssmuth as a “great woman and a passionate fighter for democracy.”
In a letter of condolence to Süssmuth’s daughter published by his office on Sunday, Steinmeier wrote: “Rita Süssmuth always led the way, was a visionary, a pioneer and a role model, especially for many women.”
Josef Schuster, president of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, praised Süssmuth as “a figurehead of reconciliation between Germany and Israel.”
He also highlighted her role in the immigration of Jewish people from countries of the former Soviet Union and in the restitution of cultural assets looted during the Nazi era.
