Raj Kollmorgen is experiencing the second corona wave right in his neighborhood. It is particularly dramatic in Saxony, currently the country's coronavirus hotspot. Kollmorgen is a social scientist and teaches at the Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences. There too, in eastern Saxony, the incidence of infection is extremely high, with new infections and patient numbers rising daily. There are many reasons why the virus is raging so fiercely here. It is also due to resistance to the corona policy in parts of the population, says Kollmorgen.
 

ZEIT ONLINE: Mr. Kollmorgen, you live in the Saxon district of Görlitz. The coronavirus incidence rate there is currently around 700, the highest in Germany. Are you surprised by this development?

Raj Kollmorgen: On the one hand, yes, because in spring, during the first corona wave, we were a tranquil region with very low case numbers. In this respect, I am surprised at how things have now turned 180 degrees. On the other hand, I'm not surprised because there are a number of factors that are favoring the epidemic in our region. One factor is political attitudes. Parts of the population are fundamentally skeptical of political decisions, and quite a few even see themselves as being in resistance and protesting. This has become even more acute in recent months.

ZEIT ONLINE: People have been protesting along the federal highway 96 for months, some of them with far-right symbols. There have been rallies in Zittau against the coronavirus policy. There was also a so-called "funeral procession" a few weeks ago. People walked through the town with an empty coffin and shouted: "Where are the dead?" What kind of milieu is protesting like this?

Kollmorgen: These are heterogeneous social and political milieus. For example, there are the disillusioned, whose distrust of the system and elites has developed over decades. For some, this goes back deep into the 1990s. In this milieu, the suspicion has hardened that the executive not only acts far away from the population and is not interested in them. They are also accused of monopolizing power in order to gain personal advantages. Conspiracy theories about the pandemic quickly fall on fertile ground. But we also have larger groups, especially in the rural areas of Saxony, that have been hit particularly hard by the coronavirus crisis. The small self-employed and medium-sized companies that dominate here, for example in the supply industry, tourism sector or retail, are suffering greatly from the shutdown situation.

ZEIT ONLINE: Sociologist Matthias Quent suspects a connection between high coronavirus infection figures and high AfD election results. What do you think of this theory?

Kollmorgen: I think this thesis is plausible. The AfD initially struggled with which strategy to adopt during the pandemic. However, the East German regional associations in particular now see themselves as the parliamentary arm of the lateral thinking movement. The AfD feeds on crises and the coronavirus crisis is therefore a welcome building block to underpin its thesis that the established elites are essentially working against their "own people". This view is more widespread in rural Saxony than in other federal states. I estimate that there are around 10 to 15 percent more people here than in comparable regions who tend to distance themselves from, fundamentally criticize and resist those in power. That certainly correlates with the AfD election results.

ZEIT ONLINE: The AfD election results tend to be higher in the East than in West Germany. So is there an eastern factor in the infection rate?

Kollmorgen: Here I would recommend not overloading the incidence of infection with socio-political factors. It is made up of many mosaic pieces. The age structure is just as relevant as the educational structure. People with a higher level of education generally take the pandemic more seriously than less educated people. Socio-geographical factors such as population density also play a role. In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, where the infection figures are currently lower, people in villages sometimes live much further apart. There is less proximity, fewer encounters than in the Ore Mountains in Saxony, for example. It's also rural there, but at the same time the social density is much higher.

ZEIT ONLINE: How strong do you think the influence of evangelical groups in corona protests is?

Kollmorgen: I don't perceive any open religiosity or even broad support from church groups in the protests. However, right-wing populist attitudes are particularly widespread in eastern and western Germany where there are strong Protestant traditions, such as in Baden-Württemberg or Saxony. I see a connection here, but it points more to social and political cultures that have developed over the long term.

ZEIT ONLINE: What role does the proximity to the Czech Republic and Poland play in the incidence of infection?

Kollmorgen: The first wave initially came from the south-east, also due to many winter holidaymakers. If you look at the second wave now, you can see why the virus is currently spreading particularly strongly in Bavaria and Saxony, especially in the border regions. There were high infection rates in the Czech Republic and Poland early in the fall. Many workers in the border regions commute to Germany, with a high proportion of them working in service professions or in the health and care sector. It is obvious that this could not remain without consequences for the pandemic. However, politicians have made little mention of this in recent weeks because they did not want to risk massive bottlenecks, particularly in the healthcare sector, or a xenophobic debate.

ZEIT ONLINE: Saxony got through the first wave relatively unscathed in the spring. Has this also had an impact on attitudes towards corona?

Kollmorgen: The infection figures were rather low in the spring, so many people didn't take the pandemic seriously. It seemed far away and hardly threatening. It was therefore easy for skeptics and protesters to get their views heard. However, this has changed considerably over the past 14 days. Especially those who see or hear about people in their circle of relatives or acquaintances who are suffering from serious illnesses have a different view of the overall situation. This is a learning process that is currently accelerating.

ZEIT ONLINE: The Prime Minister of Saxony, Michael Kretschmer, has also been in talks with coronavirus protesters in recent months. In the summer, he met confidentially with Sucharit Bhakdi, Stefan Homburg and other representatives, all of whom have close ties to the conspiracy scene. Is Kretschmer's openness towards these groups a mistake, given the high infection figures in his federal state?

Kollmorgen: It has to be said that he has remained true to his political style with these talks. He is showing a consistency here that I find likeable. In contrast, I find it rather problematic that he is now declaring himself the champion of a tough pandemic policy and hardly seems prepared to seriously address criticism of his previous line. However, I think that would make sense, especially in view of the further course of events and possible new crises. He shares this public rejection of criticism of previous policies and measures with many prime ministers and governments in general. And one thing remains true: anyone who governs in such times of crisis has to deal with great responsibility and high decision-making pressure under uncertain conditions. In this respect, I can understand the need for action on the part of the heads of government and would not want to change places with them.

Interview: Doreen Reinhard