Extremism - Office for the Protection of the Constitution classifies AfD offspring as suspected cases
The North Rhine-Westphalian Office for the Protection of the Constitution has classified the youth organization of the AfD, Junge Alternative (JA), in NRW as a suspected right-wing extremist organization. "There are strong indications that the Junge Alternative does not play by democratic rules, but prefers its own right-wing extremist set of rules," announced Interior Minister Herbert Reul (CDU) on Tuesday. The NRW Office for the Protection of the Constitution is therefore monitoring the Junge Alternative from now on.
The AfD, on the other hand, spoke of "insinuations and conjecture". The allegations are now being closely examined, said a spokesperson for the Düsseldorf state parliamentary group. The General Secretary of the NRW SPD, Frederick Cordes, accused the AfD of: "The bourgeois-conservative veneer was never more than a makeshift mask."
According to Reul, the state association of the JA NRW has ideologically aligned itself with the political course of the national association of the Junge Alternative since 2019. This is characterized by a "national-ethnic understanding of the people and xenophobia". JA NRW also advocates positions that violate the guarantee of human dignity. In particular, the aim of excluding and disparaging people with a migration background and Muslims is evident.
In recent years, JA NRW has developed into a component of the right-wing extremist movement of the New Right, reported Reul. The NRW AfD youngsters advertise on social media for the "Identitarian Movement" and its successor organizations such as "Lukreta", "Revolte Rheinland", "1 Prozent" and the "Institut für Staatspolitik".
The NRW youth organization of the AfD also provides a forum for protagonists of the New Right. People with right-wing extremist biographies are also active in the JA NRW. Another important indication is the proximity to the formally dissolved so-called wing of the AfD federal party and its ideological leader Björn Höcke.
In a suspected case, there are "sufficiently weighty factual indications" of anti-constitutional aspirations. The Office for the Protection of the Constitution can then evaluate and store personal data and, under strict conditions, use intelligence service means, such as surveillance or recruiting informants.
A dispute is currently pending at the Münster Higher Administrative Court between the AfD federal party and the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution regarding the classification of the party as a suspected case of right-wing extremism. The federal association of the AfD is defending itself against a ruling at first instance. In March 2022, the Cologne Administrative Court ruled in favor of the Office for the Protection of the Constitution when it classified the AfD as a suspected case. The Federal Association of the Junge Alternative also no longer wants to be classified as a suspected case.
The decisions of the OVG in Münster in these nationwide cases are expected in the spring. The proceedings are pending in NRW because the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution has its headquarters in Cologne.
The statements made by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution and several state offices against the AfD and its organizations suggest that the decision on the JA was primarily politically motivated, argued the spokesperson for the AfD state parliamentary group. "The AfD is a constitutional party and stands firmly on the ground of the Basic Law". This also applies to its youth organization. "The party takes tough action against the few who cross borders, just as we have done in the past, are currently doing and will continue to do in the future."
SPD General Secretary Cordes countered: "The AfD youth organization is not based on the constitution." In fact, significant parts of the AfD are trying to undermine the democratic system. "The Junge Alternative gathers and networks radical enemies of democracy in the far-right spectrum."
Interior Minister Reul said that a political debate was necessary, regardless of the professional assessment of the AfD youth organization. "To achieve this, we as political leaders must make good policies for the people in this country and explain them in a reasonable way."
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Source: www.stern.de
