Neo-Nazis Take Council Seats in Cities Across Germany As March of the Far Right Continues Through Europe

[Nachtengel]

The German government is alarmed at a weekend of local elections which saw neo-Nazis propelled into power in towns and cities across the country.

Right-wingers seized council seats in many major urban centres as the recession bites and anti-foreigner sentiment increases.

Berlin, acutely aware of Germany’s past when the world’s last major recession opened the window for Adolf Hitler and his supporters, is thrashing around for a solution to the burgeoning allure of the extremists, particularly among the young.

In the east German cities of Leipzig, Dresden, Weimar, Schwerin, Rostock and Erfurt the main neo-Nazi party the National Democratic Party of Germany (NPD) won seats in all councils. In Parthenstein in Saxony the NPD candidate tied with his centre-left social democratic opponent – but then won the vacant seat by drawing straws with his rival.

In the state of Thuringia the NPD seized 21 seats, in Saxony 73, trebling their numbers from the last elections in 2004. In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania it now has representatives in most local councils.

In the wealthy western Saarland the NPD won seats in the city councils of Saarbruecken and Völklingen. In Saarbücken the party won 1.9 per cent of the votes, in Völklingen 4.6 per cent, and in the ancient Roman city of Trier they won their first seat in the city parliament.

Continued:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worl...es-Europe.html

[snublefot]

Interesting developement. However, if this continue in the state election in Saxony I'm pretty sure the government will do whatever they can to ban the NPD alltogether.

Don't forget that Germany hold several political dissidents imprisoned and persecute others. They won't have any problem wih banning a political party!

[Sigurd]

Well, snublefot, it's not like they haven't already tried to ban the NPD. It failed before, paradoxically, due to the amount of high-profile informers the establishment had sent to infiltrate the party.

[Stimme]

Well, snublefot, it's not like they haven't already tried to ban the NPD. It failed before, paradoxically, due to the amount of high-profile informers the establishment had sent to infiltrate the party.

But didn't they resend most of those "V-Männer" already? It wouldn't be too hard to ban the NPD if they were planning to do so by now.

[Sigurd]

I still come across enough "V-Männer" trying to infiltrate the movement. Interestingly enough, they seem to have at large moved on to the Freie Kameradschaften to gain their information, but I would not be surprised if there is still a substantial amount of people with NPD membership who are actually informers.

I mean, it's not like the NPD or any other party has the chance to scrutinise a potential member so thoroughly as to preclude the possibility 100%, and even though they will be more careful, I am certain that informerdom still runs rampant.

[Stimme]

What do you mean by coming across enough "V-Männer" trying to infiltrate the movement? Are you a member of the NPD yourself? And if so: In what way does the awareness of being possibly infiltrated influence the party's atmosphere? Not trusting your own people must cause problems.

[Freigeistige]

The German government can ban political parties? I thought Germany had a thriving anti-fascist movement. Isn't the banning of political parties a bit fascist?

[Stimme]

The German government can ban political parties? I thought Germany had a thriving anti-fascist movement. Isn't the banning of political parties a bit fascist?

They can if said political party is against the Grundgesetz, Germany's basic law, which was created by NS enemies.

[Aeternitas]

They can ban a party if the party is deemed anti-constitutional. In post-war Germany, several right-wing parties were banned for this reason, e.g. the FAP, outlawed in 1995. The Bundesamt für Verfassungsschutz is in charge of observing anti-constitutional parties, and the NPD is currently on its list.

The court rejected a ban on the NPD in 2003 because the "hate offenses" were either committed by the informants or reactions to incitement by informers, many of them in high places (I've read somewhere that around 10% of the NPD leadership was made up of these V-Männer). Furthermore, the Bundestag, Bundesrat and the Bundesregierung all hired informants at the same time but failed to inform one another about their activities.

[Ossi]

Often I suspected the most stereotypical neo-nazis, or what is called "nutzis" on these forums to be informers, those who always shout slogans and wave flags, to make sure everyone accepts them and no one suspects them of being a liberal, but you never know, there are genuine people like that too.