The team player

We met the leader of the Democratic Party on Thursday last week for an interview, which, however, was not about her government work – Corinne Cahen is Minister for Family and Integration as well as Minister for the Greater Region – but about her function as DP President. Cahen has held the party presidency (her mandate runs until the 2022 Congress and can be renewed) since November 2015; she first became a member of the government two years earlier. We led the interview at the Mudam in Kirchberg, where a very cheerful Corinne Cahen took plenty of time to answer our questions.

Lëtzebuerger Journal: As President of the Democratic Party, you should know best: Is the Journal a DP magazine?

Corinne Cahen: I read the Journal every day and I really can't tell. Rather, I sometimes have the impression that the opposite is the case.

So why are there always these accusations in other media as well as from other parties?

This is because the statutes of the Democratic Party unfortunately still state that members should subscribe to the Journal, that this is the party newspaper. However, this has not corresponded to reality for many years. That’s why I have suggested to the "Comité directeur" to finally delete this paragraph from the statutes, which is to happen this year at an extraordinary congress.

As I was once a journalist myself, I know how important it is, that journalists should be able to work freely and independently. However, I have to say that with the exception of you (Pascal Steinwachs), I know almost no one from the Journal editorial team, which makes clear what direct connection I have to the editorial team, none at all.