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Free University of Berlin
Photo: Rainer Jensen / dpa
The procedure for the doctoral thesis by Federal Family Minister Franziska Giffey is dragging on.
The examination committee of the Free University of Berlin (FU), which is supposed to deal with the case, has not yet started its work.
This emerges from the response of the Berlin Senate Chancellery for Science and Research to a request from the CDU parliamentary group in the House of Representatives, which SPIEGEL has received.
The appointment of the body "should take place shortly", it says in the letter.
The reasons given for the delay are "Effects of the pandemic on university operations" and "Care when carrying out the procedure including checking possible concerns about bias".
The Free University of Berlin informed the Governing Mayor Michael Müller, who is also Senator for Science at the same time, of this.
At the beginning of 2019, allegations of plagiarism against Franziska Giffey's dissertation became known.
The SPD politician then applied for an investigation into her work at the Free University of Berlin.
Their commission came to the conclusion that the work contained violations of the practice of good science - and issued a reprimand to Giffey.
In the meantime, Giffey has declared that he will forego the title.
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However, her doctorate was not withdrawn - although the Berlin University Act does not provide for a reprimand in such a case.
After several critical reports on its approach, the university announced in autumn 2020 that it would make a new decision on the plagiarism allegations.
This review of your own procedure should be completed by the end of February.
The schedule should now be wasted.
In response to a request from SPIEGEL, the FU announced on Wednesday that the doctoral committee of the political and social sciences department had now "set up and appointed a new examination board after a necessary and laborious process of finding.
The first meeting of the six-member committee "should take place promptly, next week".
"Suspicion of a delay"
Adrian Grasse, research policy spokesman for the CDU parliamentary group in Berlin, thinks that the commission's late start to work requires explanation.
"Delays in the renewed review of Ms. Giffey's doctoral thesis, possibly until after the Berlin election in September, are incomprehensible," said Grasse.
Giffey is the SPD's top candidate for the House of Representatives election in autumn.
If the re-examination took nine months as in the first round, a decision might not be made until after the election.
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The FU explained: "Since the examination bodies are obliged to take special care, the time required to carry out the complex examination procedure can be decided by the examination committee itself." the last week of January.
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