Radical Ideology - Wüst requests apologies from NSU victims in Cologne
The leader of North Rhine-Westphalia, Hendrik Wüst (CDU), offered an apology to those impacted by the 2004 NSU attack that took place in Cologne. In a piece for the "Cologne City Announcer" and the Turkish newspaper "Hürriyet," he addressed those who endured the assault as well as those who were falsely accused despite being victims.
"The state, whose principal duty is to safeguard its citizens, must recognize its inability to carry out this task in the Keupstraße. It didn't protect the people from physical and psychological harm or false accusations," he penned. He begged "those who were disbelieved for so long and who were unjustly made suspects, even though they were victims, for forgiveness."
A total of 22 people sustained injuries, some being severe. On June 9, 2004, Uwe Mundlos and Uwe Böhnhardt, members of the NSU, planted a nail bomb in Keupstraße, leading to these injuries. For years, the police pointed fingers towards the Turkish neighborhood as a possible cause. No investigation towards right-wing extremism occurred. Following Mundlos and Böhnhardt's deaths in 2011, the reality emerged that the National Socialist Underground (NSU) had perpetrated this assault and other killings.
In his article, Wüst noted that the residents had to confront not only the horror of the attack and the fear for their lives, but also "prejudice and humiliation." As events unfolded, victims were sometimes labeled as suspects. Since then, NRW has been rectifying its blunders. The police and justice system currently take note of the social diversity of our nation more forcefully.
This Sunday, in the presence of Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, the 20-year-old attack will be commemorated.
