German politician, who called Chinese people ‘slit eyes’ and mocked gay marriage, says it was not his intention to hurt people

Germany’s EU commissioner, Günther Oettinger, has apologised after a storm of criticism over a speech in which he called Chinese people “slit eyes”, mocked gay marriage and denounced a Belgian region.



The politician, a senior member of German chancellor Angela Merkel’s centre-right party, has faced an outpouring of anger following the speech last Friday to an audience of business leaders, when he described a delegation of Chinese officials he had met as having “their hair brushed from left to right with black shoe polish”.



Oettinger, who previously insisted he had nothing to apologise for, was criticised by a Chinese government spokesperson, who said his remarks revealed “a baffling sense of superiority entrenched in some western politicians”.



EU chief pokes fun at Chinese, gay marriage and ex-chancellor Read more

But Oettinger performed an about-turn on Thursday, saying he had had time to reflect. “I can now see that the words I used have created bad feelings and may even have hurt people. This was not my intention and I would like to apologise for any remark that was not as respectful as it should have been,” he said.

He said his speech had been intended as a wake-up call to a domestic audience, arguing that attempts to reduce the retirement age and increase pensions would lead to Germany losing competitiveness.



Oettinger also claimed he had been misquoted in his remarks on the Belgian region of Wallonia. Belgian politicians made a formal complaint to the head of the EU commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, after it was reported that Oettinger had described Wallonia as a “micro-region run by communists that blocks Europe”. He was referring to the socialist-led Walloon parliament’s role in slowing an EU trade deal with Canada.



In his apology, Oettinger described Wallonia as “not only historically an important European region, but [one that] actively contributes to the cultural and political diversity of Europe”.

He did not return to his remarks on Merkel’s liberal social policy, where he joked about “compulsory gay marriage”.

The row comes at an awkward time for the commissioner, who will take over running the EU budget from Kristalina Georgieva, who is stepping down to manage the World Bank. Brussels insiders have suggested his habit of making off-colour remarks may cost him the title of vice-president that Georgieva enjoys.

He is also expected to face a tough time from the European parliament, which will test his suitability for the new role at a hearing expected before the end of the year.