German far right unites for polls

BBC News ^ | 05/17/05

[TigerLikesRooster]

Last Updated: Tuesday, 17 May, 2005, 15:49 GMT 16:49 UK

 

German far right unites for polls

Germany is gearing up for a key election on Sunday in the mainly industrial state of North Rhine-Westphalia.

But the BBC's Tristana Moore in Berlin reports that far-right parties have their sights on a bigger goal - they are joining forces for next year's federal elections.

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Police blocked a neo-Nazi march in Berlin on VE Day

The activities of neo-Nazis were very much in the spotlight on 8 May as Europe marked the 60th anniversary of the Allies' victory in World War II.

Supporters of the far right had threatened to march through Berlin towards the Brandenburg Gate and the new Holocaust Memorial nearby. But in the end hundreds of neo-Nazis dressed in black and many wearing balaclavas, were blocked on a square in the east of the city - Alexanderplatz.

They were surrounded and outmanoeuvred by riot police and thousands of protesters - members of anarchist groups, trade unionists and ordinary citizens.

Since their electoral successes in the east German state of Saxony, the far-right parties have gained momentum, but they have also come under intense public scrutiny.

War controversy

Last September, members of the far-right National Democratic Party (NPD) won more than 9% of the vote in Saxony. Two of their MPs in the state parliament, Holger Apfel and Uwe Leichsenring, have made controversial statements in parliament about the Allied bombing of Dresden during the war.

According to Mr Apfel, it was a "Holocaust of Germans".

	Far-right parties must work together now and act Udo Voigt, NPD leader

Mr Leichsenring, a former taxi driver, now turns up for work in parliament dressed in a smart suit and tie - the traditional image of neo-Nazis as skinheads has disappeared, at least in public.

Other MPs try to ignore the NPD, some turn their backs in the parliament chamber, or the NPD members are shouted down.

The far-right parties have mobilised many supporters in the former communist East Germany, where unemployment is high - often one in five is without a job.

Saxony - famous for its mountains and the river Elbe - is now known for neo-Nazi activities in towns such as Heidenau and Koenigstein.

"People are fed up with the government's broken promises on the economy," said Mr Leichsenring, an NPD deputy in Saxony. "The government reforms have created poverty."

Election alliance

The NPD and another far-right party, the German People's Union (DVU), have now decided to forge an alliance in time for next year's federal elections.

The NPD has exploited economic woes in the east

The NPD chairman, Udo Voigt, has a fortified office in Berlin - graffiti has been sprayed on the walls outside, the windows are barred and closed-circuit cameras monitor the entrance.

Mr Voigt was quick to distance himself from any suggestions that his party was linked to violence - and he denied any links with the so-called "Brotherhoods," or Kameradschaften, which are small, far-right groups.

He is proud of the NPD's new electoral tactics - but his words barely conceal the hardline anti-foreigner sentiments which most people associate with his party.

"We've noticed that so many foreigners are pouring into Germany, so we sat down with the leaders of the DVU," he said.

"We decided that both parties can't keep on fighting against each other, taking votes away, as one day all these foreigners will have power here in Germany. So far-right parties must work together now and act."

The prospect of any far-right party winning a seat in the federal parliament, or Bundestag, fills most Germans - including politicians - with horror.

Two years ago, Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's government tried to ban the NPD, but this attempt failed after the constitutional court rejected its case.

However, many politicians would still like to see the NPD banned.

"The far-right parties have managed to get into the state assemblies of Saxony and Brandenburg," notes Sebastian Edathy, a Social Democrat MP.

"We can't rule out the possibility that these parties will manage one day to enter the national parliament. These far-right parties are the enemies of democracy, they are orientated towards the time of Hitler in Germany, and they pose a threat to democracy itself."

[TigerLikesRooster]

The problem is that German political establishment are dominated by the left. They are mostly preoccupied with anti-war movement and environment, slow to address Muslim militants and immigration problems. That will provide political opening for far-right. The left won't address these issues seriously. It is their nature. At the same time, they are bottling up far-right. That will only make the situation more explosive.

[nathanbedford]

George Soros actually poses far graver danger to Germany and America than a bushel of these parties.

[traviskicks]

It wouldn't suprise me if a good solid conservative party gets labeled in with this 'far right' crowd. I don't think this sort of labeling is helpful, as reagan said:


Today we are told we must choose between a left and right or, as others suggest, a third alternative, a kind of safe middle ground. I suggest to you there is no left or right, only an up or down. Up to the maximum of individual freedom consistent with law and order, or down to the ant heap of totalitarianism; and regardless of their humanitarian purpose those who would sacrifice freedom for security have, whether they know it or not, chosen this downward path.

[ClaireSolt]

They need to find a way out of this PC GROUPTHINK in Europe. And, they need to stop talking of banning dangerous ideas. The way to combat bad ideas is with good ideas.

[inquest]

"Far-right parties must work together now and act"

-Udo Voigt, NPD leader

Agent Provocateur Alert. This guy is definitely no rightist. No conservative would ever publicly refer to himself by the leftist propaganda phrase "far right", any more than he would call himself "ultraconservative". When's the last time you saw a leftist political figure call himself "far left" or "ultraliberal"?

[swilhelm73]

I guess all those free speech restrictions are working wonders...huh?

I can understand the German desire to censor neo-NAZIs, but it seems to me the American model works much better - answer "hate" speech with "better" speech.

[Brilliant]

"People are fed up with the government's broken promises on the economy," said Mr Leichsenring, an NPD deputy in Saxony. "The government reforms have created poverty."

Let's ask why these good people have been turned into social misfits--what are the causes of this racism and criminality? Why, quite obviously, it is poverty, and oppression... The far left nutcases who rule Germany have caused this situation by spreading poverty and oppression. They've turned these good people into monsters. Liberal society is to blame.

[Bringbackthedraft]

This will eventually snowball, and I won't be suprised to see it go east and west in Europe. Somewhere along the line a strong spokesman for the NDP will evolve and then hold on. Germans are very nationalistic when it comes to their homeland. If it means expelling foreign workers from there to better their economy they'll find ways to do it before France even thinks about it, which isn't saying much is it? While stationed in FRG I often wondered if the S and A were ommited from the NDP.

[Malesherbes]

I agree with Tiger, and I would suggest that the situation in Britain, France, and elsewhere in western Europe is the same.All it will take is an economic crisis and all hell will break loose.