German Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck has issued an urgent warning against the right-wing populist AfD. The Green politician accuses the right of wanting to rebuild Germany in the style of Vladimir Putin’s Russia. A ban on the party would have to be considered “very carefully”.
“The right-wing authoritarians are concerned about an attack on the essence of the republic,” the Green politician told “Stern” magazine. “They want to turn Germany into a state like Russia.” They have systematically prepared for this.
Habeck demands toughness
The security authorities must therefore also work systematically, “collecting evidence, closely monitoring subsections, individuals, events and statements.” Moreover, crimes must be punished consistently and harshness is needed “according to our laws and on the basis of the Constitution”.
When asked whether he was for or against a ban on the AfD, Habeck said: “It is not a matter of political attitude, but of the law.” Only the Federal Constitutional Court decides on a ban.
The hurdles are rightly very high and the damage caused by a botched procedure would be enormous. “So everything should be absolutely legal. You have to think about that very carefully.”
No state with fascists
Habeck emphasized: “If it has been proven with certainty that a party wants to turn the country into a fascist state, it must be banned, no matter how strong it is. In any case, the democratic parties must politically defeat the AfD.”
The ideological divide is also becoming increasingly visible within the population. More than 10,000 people demonstrated on Tuesday evening in the German city of Cologne against the right-wing populist Alternative for Germany (AfD). The crowd was large. The police even estimated the number of participants at ‘several tens of thousands’.
There were calls to consider banning the party. The demonstrators’ posters featured slogans such as “We are colorful! There are more of us!”, “AfD – pioneers of fascism” and “Nazis eat kebabs in secret”. Participants also emphasized that democracy is resilient.
The reason for the demonstrations was the recently announced right-wing meeting in a villa in Potsdam.
Source: Krone
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