Hearing about AfD ban proceedings in the Thuringian state parliament

It is considered the sharpest sword of democracy: Should a party ban procedure be initiated against the AfD or not? For the first time, lawyers, experts and celebrities discussed this question in a German parliament during a hearing - of all places in Thuringia, where the AfD regional association with its leader Björn Höcke is considered particularly radical.

Also expected in the state parliament were the entertainer Hape Kerkeling, whose grandfather experienced torture and forced labor in the Buchenwald concentration camp, as well as the former Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution Hans-Georg Maaßen, who recently occasionally appeared as a speaker at AfD election campaign events. The appearances by Kerkeling and Maaßen were delayed until late in the evening - the MPs had many questions for the invited constitutional lawyers.

The reason for the hearing was a request from the Left parliamentary group. She wants to ensure that the state government supports a ban procedure at the federal level. After AfD election successes in Saxony-Anhalt, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Berlin, the debate about a ban procedure has recently picked up speed again. What chances would a procedure have? What if it fails? The most important arguments of the hearing:

Opportunity for de-radicalization

The AfD is changing radically or a ban procedure would be successful - the lawyer Chan-jo Jun was convinced of this. Jun is a deputy member of the Bavarian Constitutional Court. He said at the hearing: "A procedure before the Federal Constitutional Court that does not end with a ban is not a failure, but a victory - and not only for the AfD, but also for the entire democracy." In this scenario, Jun assumes that the AfD will change significantly - he also admitted that he does not think this is the most likely forecast.

Intervention in democratic competition

The AfD sent one of its lawyers to the hearing: The lawyer and AfD lawyer Christian Conrad warned against party ban proceedings if there are uncertainties. “Initiating ban proceedings against a party that is not unconstitutional is itself unconstitutional,” he said. Before the hearing began, Conrad appeared at an AfD press conference. Conrad noted that the proposal is not legally binding on the government. “That means this is at best a political mandate,” he said. In the end, it is not about a review process, but about a party ban process, he emphasized. You go into battle.

Racist worldview

The lawyer Hendrik Cremer from the German Institute for Human Rights accused the AfD of having a racist and nationalist worldview. “The AfD aims to eliminate the basic democratic order,” he said. A party ban process has high hurdles, said Cremer. “In the case of the AfD, I see it as fulfilled.” Kathrin Groh from the University of the Bundeswehr said that the AfD was stirring up fear and desire for retaliation in society. Regarding the question of whether an application for a ban should be directed against the federal party or against individual state associations, she said that an isolated application against a state association could probably lead to a result more quickly.

Danger to the Federal Republic

Kirill-Alexander Schwarz, professor of public law at the University of Würzburg, was of the opinion that an important criterion for an AfD ban had been met - the threat to the existence of the Federal Republic. He justified this with demands from the AfD to leave the EU and at least parts of the party to leave NATO. The AfD also maintains close ties to dictatorial systems like the one in Russia. According to Schwarz, neither the size of the AfD nor the possible duration of the proceedings before the Federal Constitutional Court speak against a ban.

This could continue

Thuringia's Interior Minister Georg Maier was not among those to be heard, but made comments on the sidelines of the state parliament: "Majories in the Federal Council are currently sorting themselves in the direction of a possible application for an AfD ban," said the SPD politician. He expects the federal-state working group proposed by North Rhine-Westphalia's CDU Prime Minister Hendrik Wüst to examine the constitutional handling of the AfD to come into being this year. This was a first step. “We’ve never been this far.” Maier has long been one of the loudest supporters of a ban on the AfD.