Essen relinquishes opposition to AfD party assembly
Despite initial resistance, Essen city has relinquished its attempts to halt the AfD's federal party conference, set to occur at the Grugahalle towards the end of June. As per a city representative, this decision follows the Administrative Court of Gelsenkirchen's ruling on Friday, which deemed it necessary for the city to provide the venue to the AfD from the 28th to the 30th of June.
The court's verdict underscores the AfD's entitlement to equal treatment in utilizing public institutions, preventing them from being treated differently than other political parties. Consequently, the city decided against appealing to the higher court, and a scheduled hearing at the Essen Regional Court on Monday has been cancelled.
Originally, the fair had requested that the AfD sign a self-commitment, a move that would have forced the party to take responsibility for any NS-slogans potentially expressed during the conference. However, AfD vice-chairman Peter Boehringer argues that it's impossible to predict and prevent every offensive speech from the conference's 1800 participants and external attendees.
New leadership elected
With the city's concessions in line with the court ruling, the legal dispute has been put on hold. In response to the city's request, the Essen Fair has acknowledged the AfD's right to access the Grugahalle without a self-commitment declaration.
Anticipating the election of a new board at the party conference later in June, various organizations have announced their opposition to the meeting. The police expect attendance of several tens of thousands during counter-demonstrations, marking some of the largest protests the city has seen in a long time.
