After the exit of the Rhineland-Palatinate left-wing chairmen, also because of the party's handling of accusations of sexism, the new federal chairman Martin Schirdewan announced consequences.
He wrote on Twitter on Wednesday: "The derogatory statements made by a district chairman in the regional association RLP contradict the basic values of our party." The regional executive will discuss the consequences on the same day.
"We expressly support this," says Schirdewan.
Sexist attacks have no place on the left.
Anna Lena Ripperger
Editor in Politics.
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The Rhineland-Palatinate state chairwoman Melanie Wery-Sims announced her resignation from the party on Monday and justified this on Facebook with the left-wing's handling of sexist insults and assaults, from which she herself suffered.
She wrote: "A special district chairman can probably continue to call my photos on Facebook jerk off templates, call another comrade 'disabled' (to even use the word as an insult is absurd) and insult and threaten employees." The handling of the left with the accusations of sexism is "unspeakable".
Wery-Sims criticizes Wisseler
As the magazine “Spiegel” reported on Wednesday, Wery-Sims published a photo of herself on Facebook in 2021 in which she wore a costume that resembled lingerie.
Some male party members commented on this with derogatory words, the magazine reported, citing screenshots available to them.
E-mails also showed disrespectful handling in the state association, some of which the federal office was also aware of;
this was set in CC.
In addition to dealing with sexism and sexualized assaults in their own ranks, Wery-Sims also cited too many "internal trench warfare" and the party's attitude towards Russia as reasons for leaving.
"Meanwhile, I no longer stand behind too much of our program," wrote the 38-year-old mother of four on Facebook.
She wants to remain politically active, "but I can achieve so much more as an activist than within the party".
Wery-Sims also criticized the federal chairman Janine Wissler.
When she applied for the post of Federal Treasurer before the federal party conference in Erfurt in June, the chairwoman told her "in no uncertain terms that she would not see me there," said Wery-Sims.
“Because I would have to move to Berlin with my children, which would certainly not be an option.
In addition, I could not be paid for the office, since everyone now has to cut back financially (from the lips of a member of the Bundestag, that is actually real satire). In Erfurt, the delegates finally confirmed the previous treasurer Harald Wolf in office.
Wery-Sims was elected at a state party conference at the end of October 2021 together with Stefan Glander to head the Rhineland-Palatinate state association.
In the federal election, the left had fallen back to its worst state result to date – 3.3 percent.
As early as March 2021, the party again failed to make it into the state parliament with 2.5 percent.
Wery-Sims was the top candidate at the time.
For months, the left has been struggling with accusations of sexism that have arisen in many state associations.
Party leader Wissler was also criticized for being involved in a case in her Hessian state association that has not yet been fully clarified.
In April, after the surprising resignation of co-chairwoman Susanne Hennig-Wellsow, she and the federal executive promised a comprehensive clarification of the allegations and apologized to the victims.