Verfassungsschutz examines AfD: 182 speeches, 80 hours of videos, 80 Facebook appearances

Little time? At the end of the text there is a summary.

Bernd Baumann tried to be confident. Whether soon threatens an observation of his party by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, the parliamentary director of the AFD parliamentary group was asked in the early morning in a round with journalists. He remains completely relaxed, according to the former media manager: "I believe that it does not come to that."

In fact, Baumann was supposed to be right a few hours later. His party is not observed for the time being. However, the news that reached the AfD on this Tuesday in Berlin, led to the AFD tip to hectic activities. It was not expected so quickly with a statement of the domestic intelligence service.

It soon became clear that the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution had declared the party to be a "test case" and the youth organization "Junge Alternative (JA) and the collecting movement" Der Flügel "co-founded by the far right Björn Höcke to" suspected cases ".

The fact that the AfD is currently escaping observation, said at one press conference President of the Constitution Protection Thomas Thun thus: indications for a "policy directed against the liberal-democratic basic order" are not sufficiently condensed to initiate an observation using intelligence.

In the case of an audit, no intelligence may be used, but only publicly accessible material, speeches and other public statements by AfD politicians - such as social media - are used. In the case of the JA and the "wing" that is different. With the stricter classification as "suspected cases", the Federal Office can theoretically apply intelligence services against JA and "Flügel" - such as surveillance and cooperation with V-people. Also in these cases - unlike an audit - "personal evaluations and personal storage" can be carried out by the Federal Office.

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Conservation President Haldenwang

Höcke and the "wing" are likely to be spared for the time being by an observation with intelligence agents. He did not expect it, so protectionist President Haldenwang, that it is "soon" to use intelligence agents "with high intensity intervention". Höcke himself responded with an ironic entry on Twitter: "I'm already sorry for the officials who have to kill their time looking for things that do not exist."

Material collection since autumn

A decision of the Federal Office for the AfD had been expected for weeks. Already since October there was a corresponding collection of material from the state offices. Overall, the Federal Office evaluated for an expert opinion material on 1069 pages, which come partly from the authority itself, but mainly from supplies of the individual state offices for protection of the Constitution.

Because according to the case law of the Federal Constitutional Court deputies are particularly protected, no speeches by AFD representatives in parliaments were used. Overall, the Federal Office examined 182 speeches by 50 party representatives, including 80 hours of video footage. Around 80 Facebook appearances by AfD officials were also included in the rating, it said.

The Federal Office took its current decision itself, this was "not mutually agreed" with the regional offices, but you will meet in a few days with the local tips.

Clues for "extremist aspiration"

That the JA was declared a "suspected case" justified Haldenwang with the fact that she pursued as a whole aspirations against the free democratic basic order, even with the "wing" there are "strongly condensed evidence" on an "extremist aspiration". Recently, the AfD at the state level had tried to part with the JA separate: So recommended before Christmas, the Bremer AFD state executive a resolution of the local youth association, the Lower Saxony JA-Landesverband had already dissolved in November. The Junge Alternative is already being watched by the constitutional protection authorities in Bremen, Lower Saxony and Baden-Württemberg.

The Thuringian state and parliamentary leader Höcke is the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution within the wing as a "linchpin", as it was called internally. Also the today's AfD-top candidate for the state election in Brandenburg, Andreas Kalbitz and one of the candidates on the AfD European election list, Islam critic Hans-Thomas Tillschneider, the domestic secret service counts to "authoritative" persons at the "wing". This was also a bit far the recently retired from the AfD André Poggenburg, it was said in Berlin.

AFP

AFD Group leaders Alexander Gauland and Alice Weidel

The AFD top responded on Tuesday at a press conference in the Bundestag. AfD party and faction leader Alexander Gauland stated that the decision was considered wrong and that it would be legal. Gauland assured Höcke and Kalbitz the support of the federal executive.

Questions about the personality Maaßen

His AFD Group Co-Chief Alice Weidel referred to the recently resigned from his office of the President of the Constitution Protection Hans-Georg Maassen: "With Mr Maassen this decision would not have been possible at all, so he had to go, so were constructed hunts and now we have this decision, "says Weidel. Maaßen had also come under criticism, among other things, because he had met with AFD leaders - ex officio as with other top politicians also, as he had always asserted.

During a background discussion of the protection of the constitution in Berlin, the question of dimensions was also raised. Representatives of the Office gave themselves confidently: Whether today's decision would have turned out differently, you do not know, you finally have "no glass ball" And: "Who cares that today?"

Nevertheless, the political message of the Federal Office to declare the AfD as a test case, is not unhelpful. Among lawyers, it is quite controversial whether the labeling as a "test case" does not already stigmatize. This had already been discussed in September, when the Thuringian constitutional protection made the local AFD regional association of Höcke to the test case.

Does the party get a stigma missed?

Similarly argued on Tuesday Roland Hartwig, himself a lawyer and head of a AfD-internal working group on dealing with the protection of the Constitution. Haldenwang had announced a "complete non-event", the President of the Constitutional Protection knew, "that, of course, can have an impact on our constituents." That would be "exactly legal look".

Also in this question they reacted calmly at the Federal Office. The "legal problem" is well known, it said. However, with the result today, one might even do the party "a favor" - because it could now dispel the suspicion of extremist ambitions.

In summary : The constitutional protection considers the AfD as a "test case", the Junge Alternative and Björn Höcke's "The Wing" even as "suspected cases". With the latter, in theory, intelligence could be used - such as observations and cooperation with V-people. At the party, however, only publicly accessible material may be included in the evaluation. Nevertheless, one is in the top indignant and considering legal action.