German opposition: religion is a must in the Constitution

The debate on whether religion is an issue for the European Constitution continues both inside and outside of the Brussels arena. The German opposition, Christian Democratic Party (CDU) will fight for an article on religion to be written into the Constitution draft, CDU leader Angela Merkel said yesterday, 27 May.

German Christian democrats are the biggest group in the European parliament, the EPP, which would now reinforce their calls for a reference to God in the Constitution draft.

These statements followed Ms Merkel's visit to the Vatican where she met Pope John Paul II. The meeting with the Pope apparently had a strong impact on the politician, German media commented today.

Religion is one of the most controversial topics for the Convention on the future of Europe. Convention president Valéry Giscard d'Estaing thinks a reference to God should be left out of the Constitution draft.

According to Mr Giscard, Europeans live in a purely secular-political system where religion does not play a role. At the same time, several Convention members are insisting on defining the issue, and perhaps including a wording similar to the Polish constitution.