Ash Wednesday face-off

Ash Wednesday may mark the end of carnival, but for Germany's political heavyweights, the party is only just beginning. All major parties were holding political rallies on Wednesday, with Bavaria the center of the action.

In the traditional beer-fueled events, party chairmen and women do not mince their words, attacking the opposition or the government with acerbic speeches.

The hub of the action is Bavaria, where the Christian Social Union (CSU), the sister party of Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU), has ruled for decades. State premier Horst Seehofer's speech is typically a highlight, but this time round he had to pace himself, as he is now Germany's acting president, until a successor has been found and therefore needs to appear moderate.

Former premier Edmund Stoiber held the keynote speech instead, focusing on the cross-party presidential candidate Joachim Gauck.

Although a candidate initially only favored by the Social Democrats and the Greens, Stoiber insisted Gauck was a man after his own heart, because he embodied conservative values, like the love of freedom and taking responsibility "like no other."

"What can I possibly have against this man, he has our views," Stoiber said, referring explicitly to Gauck's view that Turkey at present does not belong in the EU.

Government ridiculed

The chairman of the Social Democrats, Sigmar Gabriel, in his speech slammed former president Christian Wulff, "who, along with his party, the CDU, tried to exploit the country."

Gabriel also ridiculed the ruling CDU in general for failing to find their own presidential candidate. "It's about time we not only got a better president, but also a better chancellor," he said in his speech.

The Greens' parliamentary leader Renate Künast said she was glad that "the unworthy drama around Christian Wulff" had come to an end, adding that the government would suffer from this in the long term.

Philipp Rösler from the Free Democrats, Merkel's junior partners in government, saved all his venom for Greece, which he slammed for "making promises to its partners without delivering." He even said that "some developing countries are doing more," referring to his view that Greece is not doing anywhere near enough to become competitive again.

"We will no longer be blackmailed," he added.

Chancellor Angela Merkel is expected to speak later in the afternoon.

ng/dfm (dpa, dapd)