German Bild raises Doubts about Rightfulness of Spy Agency’s Report that AfD is anti-constitutional

The AfD is a relatively new right-wing party, the second largest party in the German parliament, after the center-right CDU.

What has happened?

The internal German Spy Agency, Protection Agency of the Constitution (Bundesverfassungs-Schutz), has issued a Report that the AfD is proven extreme-right and therefore anti-constitutional.

The text of the Report has not been published, just some arguments were leaked to the press from the Report showing AfD policies and public declarations from AfD members that may be contrary to the German Constitution.

The Report was published on the last working day of the outgoing Government, by the SPD Interior Minister Nancy Faeser on her last day before leaving work.

Bild asks “why on Earth she published the Report on her last day and did not hand the charge over to the new Government?”

Bild also reminds that the Spy Agency had no top manager at the time the Report was published. The Spy Agency is dependent and a full subsidiary of the Interior Ministry and obliged to follow instructions.

The Report of the Spy Agency can have dire consequences for the AfD: their members can be sanctioned, surveilled and excluded from jobs and daily life. Police can spy and investigate, the German institutions can start to prohibit the AfD as party and they eventually can be excluded from Parliament.

Bild does not see a reason why Nancy Faeser published the Report on her last day of work. There was no urgency. Bild asks if Faeser was afraid that the new Minister or the new Spy Agency Chief would conclude differently, either not to publish the Report or not to accuse the AfD of being anti-constitutional.

Bild continues that “it is a scandal that the Spy Agency does not publish its Report entirely and that nobody can see the arguments why AfD is now to be designated as extreme-right and anti-constitutional”. Bild asks if the Report is just a “thin soup”?

Bild concludes that Faeser and the Spy Agency made a blunder: it was Faeser’s poisonous good bye gift to AfD on her last day, a Report that will create a scandal and political confrontation. And furthermore, it creates doubts on the rightfullness of Government acts. In addition, the German Government is again criticized by the US, the US Foreign Secretary accusing Germany of “tyranny”.

The Report has an impact on German politics. The CDU, after the last elections and in view of AfD’s tremendous success has changed attitude and would approach the AfD. This would be a big loss for the SPD, the coalition partner of the CDU. With the Report in its hands, the SPD can increase the pressure on the CDU as the CDU may not be able to commence political discussions with the AfD, not with an anti-constitutional party.