Angela Merkel - Chancellor of the Free World

(Baonghean) - German Chancellor Angela Merkel is the name that has been announced for the position of "Person of the Year 2015" voted by Time magazine.

In a year when terrorism, migrants and protests dominated the headlines, Time magazine chose Chancellor Merkel as its Person of the Year, alongside other contenders including Islamic State (IS) leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, transgender Caitlyn Jenner, Uber CEO Travis Kalanick, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.

Portrait of the powerful female Chancellor of Germany. Photo: Internet.

Announcing the winner of the magazine's poll on NBC on December 9, Time Editor-in-Chief Nancy Gibbs highlighted Merkel's contributions to solving a series of problems - including the economic crisis in Europe linked to countries like Greece, the influx of migrants to the old continent from the Middle East and Africa, the deadly and bloody terrorist attacks in the region, etc. Ms. Gibbs said: "No one has experienced the challenges like Ms. Merkel."

Easy choice

According to CNN, Time magazine contributor Karl Vick said the award is given annually to people who appear frequently in the news that year and have the greatest influence on international events, regardless of whether the influence is positive or negative.

According to Mr. Vick, it was quite easy to choose Ms. Angela Merkel for the position of 2015, because “in fact, she leads the European Union (EU)” through holding the leadership position of the largest and most economically powerful member state of the EU.

This year alone, the old continent of the EU has had to bear the brunt of existential crises. And in those times, Merkel has proven her leadership, whether in the Greek debt crisis that has had a significant impact on the Eurozone, or in the ongoing migration crisis that is causing headaches for many heads of state.

The European migration crisis is perhaps the biggest challenge Mrs Merkel has faced.

In that context, Germany is the pioneer, opening its arms to welcome the unfortunate, pledging to accept 800,000 migrants this year alone, much more than any other European country, and becoming the ideal destination for migrants who have to leave their homelands because of war and conflict.

Although the reactions that Ms. Merkel gave may not be understandable to many people, and many even believe that her actions are different from the usual personality of the "Iron Lady" of Germany, it is undeniable that Ms. Merkel's important role in the effort to steer the ship called Europe through the stormy journeys of the past year.

From physicist to first female prime minister

Merkel, 61, is the fourth woman to be named Time magazine's Person of the Year since the title was created in 1927. The others are Wallis Simpson, the married woman whom King Edward VIII of England once gave up his throne to marry; Queen Elizabeth II; and former Philippine President Corazon Aquino.

Born to a pastor father and a teacher mother, Merkel grew up in East Germany, showing early academic ability and building a successful career as a physicist.

But after the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, she found a new calling in politics. In 1990, she was elected to the German Parliament, and within a year had won her first cabinet position.

Ms. Merkel became Germany's first female chancellor in 2005, and eight years later was re-elected for a third term as Berlin's leader.

In May 2005, Ms. Merkel was nominated by the CDU/CSU alliance to run for Chancellor.

Angela Merkel is known for her analytical approach to politics, and for her closeness to public opinion, enjoying high approval ratings, although her approval ratings have recently dropped due to concerns about her response to the migrant crisis.

Being affectionately called “mother” by the German people partly shows her rustic and simple personality, and that is further confirmed when people know that she has always lived in a very ordinary house for over 10 years, maintaining normal habits such as regularly going to watch football with her husband,...

It is difficult to avoid gossip.

As mentioned above, although Time magazine has used the most beautiful words such as "Chancellor of the free world" for Mrs. Merkel, there are still some people who are "not convinced" with this choice. That is partly because the results announced by the Time Editorial Board after the independent voting process are significantly different from the online poll about the most potential names for this year's title.

When the winner was announced on NBC, the online polls still had IS leader Baghdadi leading the polls with 64% of the vote, with US presidential candidate Donald Trump coming in second with 18% and President Putin coming in third with about 11%. Merkel, meanwhile, was near the bottom of the list, just ahead of Jenner and Rouhani.

Immediately after hearing the news, Trump responded on Twitter, saying he was not surprised that Time magazine did not choose him, “despite his many supporters.” Even implicitly alluding to Merkel’s immigration-friendly policies, Trump wrote: “They chose the person who is destroying Germany.”

No matter what anyone says, the title “Person of the Year 2015” has been awarded to Mrs. Merkel, after careful consideration by a prestigious magazine with many years of experience.

Thu Giang

(According to CNN)