Hamburg's coalition and the Left are pushing for an AfD ban to be examined earlier

Hamburg's red-green coalition and the Left are pushing for a change of course in the debate about a possible AfD ban. Unlike what has previously been decided by the citizens, a federal-state working group should examine the requirements for a ban now - and not only after a decision by the Cologne Administrative Court. The citizens will decide on a corresponding joint application on September 30th.

The move means a departure from the previous Hamburg line. In January, the citizens decided to initially make the establishment of a federal-state working group dependent on the decision in Cologne. The administrative court there is dealing with the question of whether the classification of the AfD as a right-wing extremist movement is legal. Only after this classification has been confirmed - according to the previous decision in Hamburg - should a working group examine the chances of success of further steps. Now the SPD, the Greens and the Left are arguing that the legal dispute could drag on for years. That's why the exam should start now.

The federal-state working group, under the leadership of the federal government, is intended to compile and evaluate all available information about the AfD. The aim is to clarify the question of whether the high constitutional requirements for proceedings before the Federal Constitutional Court could be met.

According to the factions, the reason for the initiative is, among other things, a 1,500-page report from the Society for Civil Rights (GFF), which was published at the end of June. The authors come to the conclusion that an application for a ban against the AfD would probably have a chance of success. Two independent second reports confirmed the scientific nature and openness of the results of the investigation, it is said.

“A party ban is no small thing,” said the chairwoman of the Hamburg Greens parliamentary group, Sina Imhof. Nevertheless, one should not stand idly by when freedom and human dignity are attacked. That’s why the federal-state working group is needed “now”.

SPD parliamentary group leader Dirk Kienscherf emphasized that the initial priority was an examination. "Politicians do not decide whether a party is banned. But they must ensure that this question can be examined reliably," he said. It is clear to democrats that the instruments to protect democracy and the rule of law should not remain unused simply because their use is politically inconvenient.

The left faction goes one step further. Your domestic policy spokesman Deniz Celik also referred to the GFF report. This comes to a clear conclusion: the conditions for the AfD to be unconstitutional are present. Therefore, the question of a ban “cannot be postponed any longer”.

Criticism comes from the CDU. Parliamentary group leader Dennis Thering warns against politicizing the process. Even the attempt to frame the debate with a party-political proposal sends “the wrong signal” and endangers trust in the independence of the institutions. "A party ban is a strictly constitutional procedure with very high hurdles. It must neither be politically influenced nor exploited for party politics," said Thering. Mayor Peter Tschentscher (SPD) rightly pointed out that a ban procedure should only be started if it has a chance of success.

The AfD's reaction was sharp. Parliamentary group leader Dirk Nockemann spoke of an “attack on democracy and the will of the voters.” In view of the party's recent electoral successes, the Red-Green-Red are now “around the corner with a desperate working group”. The attempt to politically eliminate the AfD is “transparent and undemocratic”. Political disputes belonged in parliament and not “in the prohibition court”.