German regional far-right leader sentenced for using Nazi symbolism

6 months ago 23

The German regional court in Halle on Tuesday fined one of the leading figures in the far-right AfD €13,000 for using Nazi symbolism while the party struggles to shed its extremist image.

Björn Höcke, the leader of the AfD in the eastern German state of Thuringia, used the phrase “Alles für Deutschland” (“Everything for Germany”) – a slogan of the official paramilitary wing of Adolf Hitler’s Nazi Party – three times in different public appearances.

The phrase itself, as well as other specific symbols of the banned party, such as the Nazi salute, are criminal offences in Germany. A fact that the former history teacher claimed to have not been aware of.

“You are an articulate, intelligent man who knows what he is saying,” leading judge Jan Stengel told Höcke during his ruling.

The fine of €13,000 is not yet final, as an appeal is possible within a week.

The unofficial head of the right-wing within the far-right party used the banned phrase in May 2021 in Merseburg. He incorporated it into his speech by shouting, “Everything for our homeland, everything for Saxony-Anhalt, everything for Germany.”

He is likely to be the top candidate in Thuringia’s state elections in September.

While the court fined the politician only for this specific incident, Höcke is accused of using the phrase several times. These were presented as evidence in court in order to explain that he used it deliberately, which was the main topic of discussion during the trial.

The judge stated that the accused “severely strained” the guise of freedom of expression.

With his choice of words, “he is signalling to his die-hard supporters that his agenda is indeed based on National Socialism”, the German Institute for Human Rights AfD expert Hendrik Cremer previously said.

However, Cremer also warned that his statements also “aim to shift the discourse in society as a whole by deliberately breaking taboos and making right-wing extremist positions the norm.“

The prosecution requested a suspended sentence for the Thuringian politician, meaning he should serve a probationary period during which he has to abide by the law, or else the underlying prison sentence would be carried out.

“[Höcke] has revitalised a slogan that has often been forgotten and made it socially acceptable,” the public prosecutor argued.

Höcke himself maintained that he did not know that ‘Alles für Deutschland’ was a slogan used by the Nazi paramilitary group.

AfD unable to shed extremist tendencies

Germany’s far-right party has recently b een embroiled in several scandals, highlighting the difficulty of normalising itself as a right-wing alternative in Germany.

In one of the most public episodes, the AfD’s two top EU candidates were accused of receiving payments via an alleged Russian propaganda network.

This Monday, the Higher Administrative Court of North Rhine-Westphalia confirmed the classification of the AfD as a suspected case of extremism by the German domestic intelligence agency, making it clear that the party will continue to be monitored by the intelligence service.

Overall, the party’s struggle to credibly move away from right-wing extremist views has led to a downward trend in opinion polls.

According to a recent INSA poll for Bild am Sonntag, the AfD has fallen to its lowest level in the polls in a year, losing 6% since the beginning of the year and now polling at 17%.