WORLD IN BRIEF : GERMANY : Parliament OKs Social Welfare Cuts
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Germany made the first large cutbacks in its postwar social welfare program, and the government says more reductions are planned. In a hotly contested move, the upper house of Parliament in Bonn trimmed unemployment benefits, child-support payments and job-retraining programs. The reforms, already approved by the lower house of Parliament, take effect Jan. 1 and could be a blow to Germans, who have had cradle-to-grave protections built up within their capitalist system since the end of World War II. The move is also politically risky for conservative Chancellor Helmut Kohl, who faces a difficult 1994 reelection campaign.
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