Young World - Constitutional protection may designate a newspaper as 'marxist-leninist'
The newspaper "Junge Welt" must acknowledge a mention in Constitutional Protection Reports according to a court ruling. The description "marxist-leninist" for the paper's orientation is accurate, the Administrative Court of Berlin decided. The court saw no reason to prevent further distribution of the reports by the Federal Interior Ministry, the presiding judge stated.
There are many connections between the editors and authors of "Junge Welt" and the communist party labeled as extremist, the court stated. The paper does not explicitly advocate for non-violence. Former RAF terrorists are frequently given a platform by the paper.
Court: "Junge Welt" conference speaks to the extreme left spectrum
The lawsuit of the overregional paper, founded in 1947 with its headquarters in Berlin, against the ministry was unsuccessful. The paper had already failed in an expedited procedure in 2022 to stop the dissemination of the reports.
According to the Constitutional Protection Report, the daily newspaper is also seen as a "political factor," for instance, because it annually holds the Rosa-Luxemburg-Conference. This point is not objectionable from the court's perspective. "They do not just provide a space and platform," the judge said. Instead, it's about addressing the extreme left spectrum and instigating a political process against the liberal democratic basic order.
The judgment is not legally binding. The managing director Dietmar Koschmieder announced after the judgment was read that they would continue to fight and, if necessary, appeal to the Federal Constitutional Court. "Our task remains to make an interesting, well-made newspaper every day, to produce a journalistic product," Koschmieder said. The active DKP member criticized the court for simply adopting "crude and stupid" evidence from the Constitutional Protection Report in its decision.
Newspaper to appeal the judgment
They did not expect to win in the first instance, Koschmieder said. Since the court did not see any fundamental significance and did not allow any legal remedies against the judgment, the newspaper must now accept that the Higher Administrative Court Berlin-Brandenburg (OVG) will deal with the case. This attempt will be made, the managing director announced.
The "Junge Welt," which claims an circulation of 21,000 sold copies, sees press and freedom of opinion threatened by the actions of the domestic intelligence services. Moreover, the mention in the reports causes significant disadvantages in editorial work and advertising sales.
BSW criticizes: "No case for the Constitutional Protection"
Criticism came also from the foreign policy spokeswoman of the Bundestag faction Die Linke (BSW), Sevim Dagdelen: The judgment deals a blow to press freedom and democracy in Germany. "Critical reporting on war and capitalism is no case for the Constitutional Protection, but rather something to be defended as part of political will-formation," so Dagdelen.
The lawsuit of the "Junge Welt" against the Federal Interior Ministry initially targeted the mention in the Constitutional Protection Reports for the years 1998, 1999, 2002 and 2004 to 2020. The lawsuit was later expanded to include further publications up to 2023.
The Federal Interior Ministry's Constitution Protection Report regularly mentions the newspaper "Junge Welt" due to its ties with the extremist communist party DKP and its annual Rosa-Luxemburg-Conference, which is perceived as a political factor. Young people in the 'Young World' should be aware of this ongoing legal battle between "Junge Welt" and the Federal Interior Ministry, as the newspaper plans to challenge the court's decision and potentially appeal to the Federal Constitutional Court.
