The German chancellor\u2019s claim that calls for remigration are in fact calls for ethnic cleansing is \u201cdefamatory,\u201d the right-wing party has alleged<\/p>\n
The Alternative for Germany (AfD) has filed a criminal complaint against German Chancellor Friedrich Merz after he claimed that the right-wing party is calling for ethnic cleansing. Merz made the remark in a heated parliamentary debate following the AfD\u2019s resounding victory in the regional elections in Saxony-Anhalt.
\nThe AfD is the most popular party in Germany, according to multiple polls, enjoying the support of 28% of respondents nationally. The right-wing opposition Eurosceptic party advocates tougher immigration controls and is also highly critical of the German government\u2019s support for Ukraine, as well as sanctions against Russia.
\nIn a statement on Thursday, the AfD parliamentary group \u2013 the largest opposition faction in the German parliament \u2013 accused Merz of defamation that goes beyond constitutionally protected free speech in parliament.<\/p>\n
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Speaking in the Bundestag on Wednesday, the chancellor claimed that in promoting \u2018remigration\u2019 the AfD is essentially advocating \u201cethnic cleansing based on origin and skin color.\u201d
\nStephan Brandner, the secretary and legal counsel for the AfD parliamentary group, stated that with \u201chis baseless and repugnant remarks\u201d directed not only at the party itself, but also at millions of German citizens, Merz has \u201ccrossed a line\u2026 in a way that carries criminal implications.\u201d
\nThe concept of \u2018remigration’, which has been gaining traction among right-wing circles in Europe in recent years, is usually understood to mean the return of criminal and \u2018non-assimilated\u2019 immigrants and, more broadly, residents with a migrant background to their countries of origin.
\nMerz made the remark days after the AfD won Sunday\u2019s regional elections in the eastern German state of Saxony-Anhalt with 43.8% of the vote.The chancellor\u2019s Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party finished a distant second, securing just over 17.2%.
\nSpeaking at a press conference, Merz acknowledged that the Christian Democrats, who had for years dominated Saxony-Anhalt\u2019s political landscape, had suffered the \u201cmost serious electoral defeat in decades.\u201d<\/p>\n
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However, the chancellor refused to change course and vowed to \u201cstrengthen our political order and our firm anchoring in Europe,\u201d while blaming the CDU\u2019s dismal results on poor communication with the voters.
\nAn INSA poll published by Bild in late August indicated that support for the governing Christian Democratic CDU\/CSU bloc had dipped to 20% nationwide, with 78% of respondents dissatisfied with Merz\u2019s coalition government.
\nMeanwhile, Ulrich Siegmund, the AfD\u2019s lead candidate in Saxony-Anhalt, said on Thursday that the party does not \u201ccategorically demonize the production of defense equipment, because we will naturally need the appropriate tools for the subsequent remigration and deportation drive.\u201d
\n\u201cThis is also in the interest of internal security, our own stability, and state defense,\u201d the politician stated in response to a journalist\u2019s question that referenced recent media reports of negotiations between Israel\u2019s Elbit Systems and regional authorities. The arms manufacturer is reportedly seeking to set up a plant in the town of Sangerhausen.
\nIn recent months, multiple establishment political figures have called for the opposition AfD to be banned for presumably posing a threat to Germany\u2019s constitutional order and democracy.
\nIn late August, Defense Minister Boris Pistorius and Baden-Wurttemberg Governor Cem Ozdemir said that the AfD should be outlawed as it supposedly calls into question the \u201cinviolability of human dignity\u201d enshrined in the German constitution. The politicians who represent the Social Democratic Party (SPD) and the Green Party, respectively, cited the right-wing party\u2019s tough-on-immigration stance.
\nThe AfD has already been placed under surveillance by the German federal authorities, which classify the party as a \u2018suspected right-wing extremist\u2019 entity. In several regions, local AfD chapters have been subjected to even wider monitoring.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The German chancellor\u2019s claim that calls for remigration are in fact calls for ethnic cleansing is \u201cdefamatory,\u201d the right-wing party has alleged The Alternative for Germany (AfD) has filed a…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":37938,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":[],"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,6,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-37937","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economy","category-environment","category-politics"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t