Germany To Ban Far-Right Political Party

[Crata]

Lawmakers in Berlin have been given the green light to file a complaint with the country's highest court seeking to ban the far-right National Democratic Party (NPD) following a Friday vote by Germany's upper legislative chamber, the Bundesrat, on the issue.

The approval of the legal bid to ban the right-wing extremist party comes after governors of the 16 states had already agreed on supporting the measure earlier this month. They recommended that the Bundesrat, which represents Germany's 16 states, do the same.

"We are convinced that the NPD is unconstitutional," said Christine Lieberknecht, the governor of the eastern state of Thuringia and a member of Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU), who added that the far-right party was aggressively pursuing its goals.

http://www.spiegel.de/international/ger ... 72969.html

Opinions?

Mine? I don't think it's a terrible idea, but it does increase the risk of them organizing underground.

[Priory Academy USSR]

Germany does have a history (to say the least) or far right parties becoming a little too mainstream. And IIRC, fascist/far right parties are banned anyway, and I don't think anyone is truly opposed to that law in Germany.
So I suppose it's not too bad, although it is worrying that far-rightism is starting to gain some support there.

[Stonec]

As long as they keep an eye on their beer halls, I don't think much could go wrong for Germany with this.
I mean, they do run the risk of making the far right wing trendy by criminalizing it, but Hipster Nazis would be pretty funny.

[Laerod]

Mine? I don't think it's a terrible idea, but it does increase the risk of them organizing underground.

They've been doing that anyway and this way they will no longer be funded by the taxpayer.

[Of the Free Socialist Territories]

This is why I like Germany.

[Divair]

Germany does have a history (to say the least) or far right parties becoming a little too mainstream. And IIRC, fascist/far right parties are banned anyway, and I don't think anyone is truly opposed to that law in Germany.
So I suppose it's not too bad, although it is worrying that far-rightism is starting to gain some support there.

Far-right parties tend to become popular during depressions/recessions. I think it is just temporary.

[Srboslavija]

National Democratic Party sounds pretty legit though.

[Priory Academy USSR]

Germany does have a history (to say the least) or far right parties becoming a little too mainstream. And IIRC, fascist/far right parties are banned anyway, and I don't think anyone is truly opposed to that law in Germany.
So I suppose it's not too bad, although it is worrying that far-rightism is starting to gain some support there.

Far-right parties tend to become popular during depressions/recessions. I think it is just temporary.

Fair point. I didn't think Germany was doing too bad, though, at least in comparison to other countries.

[Ifreann]

What would banning them as a political party actually do? Would the NPD thereafter be considered a criminal organisation? Could one be imprisoned for membership in the NPD? Or would they just no longer be an official, taxpayer supported party? Could a banned NPD just run candidates as independent out of their own pockets?

[Divair]

Far-right parties tend to become popular during depressions/recessions. I think it is just temporary.

Fair point. I didn't think Germany was doing too bad, though, at least in comparison to other countries.

Everyone in Europe isn't in a great spot right now.

[Nazis in Space]

Germany does have a history (to say the least) or far right parties becoming a little too mainstream. And IIRC, fascist/far right parties are banned anyway, and I don't think anyone is truly opposed to that law in Germany.
So I suppose it's not too bad, although it is worrying that far-rightism is starting to gain some support there.

Eh.

Granted, their support tripled in the mid-2000s, but 1 1/2% & stable aren't exactly world-shattering.

[Ifreann]

Fair point. I didn't think Germany was doing too bad, though, at least in comparison to other countries.

Everyone in Europe isn't in a great spot right now.

I think ze Tschermans are doing fairly well relative to the rest of us, but that isn't saying very much, and besides which, they're the ones bailing the rest of us out.

[Nazis in Space]

What would banning them as a political party actually do? Would the NPD thereafter be considered a criminal organisation? Could one be imprisoned for membership in the NPD? Or would they just no longer be an official, taxpayer supported party? Could a banned NPD just run candidates as independent out of their own pockets?

Realistically?

A new party is founded, or they merge into another right-wing party.

Whether another party would accept them is a different matter, though. The last time they tried to ban the NPD, the attempt failed because every single instance of unconstitutional activity provided to the courts turned out to have been the action of an undercover agent, or paid snitch working for the government.

In any case, given the hilarious state of the party's finances, and the tendency of its leadership to use said finances to fund themselves a new car or two, the difference between 'Banning' and 'Watching it self-destruct' is pretty minor. So minor that I'm tempted to suggest that the attempt to ban it is an attempt to gain political capital without it backfiring hilariously (As it did the last time) on account of the party being effectively dead in the first place, making it a pleasantly-easy target that can nonetheless convince the electorate that you're 'Doing something'.

[Moruo]

just silly...
they will found a new party and change the name like
United German Party or something like that

[Risottia]

Opinions?

Very good. Nazis are antithetical to any kind of democracy, and should be kept out of the proceedings of democracies.

[Herhangi bir]

I suppose since they are in the far-right, then it's completely justified to suppress their political freedoms and freedoms of speech, assembly, and the like.

People should be able to express their beliefs and perspective, regardless of what they are. Open discourse and communication would probably be preferred to interdicting such, as things will be able to develop normally instead of mutating. It's not like a ban is going to uproot the thoughts people possess, which isn't desirable to begin with. Hiding something doesn't eliminate something.

[Ralkovia]

Lawmakers in Berlin have been given the green light to file a complaint with the country's highest court seeking to ban the far-right National Democratic Party (NPD) following a Friday vote by Germany's upper legislative chamber, the Bundesrat, on the issue.

The approval of the legal bid to ban the right-wing extremist party comes after governors of the 16 states had already agreed on supporting the measure earlier this month. They recommended that the Bundesrat, which represents Germany's 16 states, do the same.

"We are convinced that the NPD is unconstitutional," said Christine Lieberknecht, the governor of the eastern state of Thuringia and a member of Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU), who added that the far-right party was aggressively pursuing its goals.

http://www.spiegel.de/international/ger ... 72969.html

Opinions?

Mine? I don't think it's a terrible idea, but it does increase the risk of them organizing underground.

Bad idea.

I know what the NPD stands for, and as a Jew I think its grotesque, however no party in a democratic system should be banned. Nazi, Communist, Theocratic, etc. Not receive tax payer funding? Maybe. However, if its an outright ban that stops the NPD from pursuing political offices then even I must stand against it.

[Bojikami]

One thing to say.

[Risottia]

People should be able to express their beliefs and perspective, regardless of what they are.

No, they shouldn't and they aren't, luckily.
Some opinions can't be allowed expression. Expecially hypocritical opinions that try to exploit democratic rights to destroy democracy and rights.

[Great Nepal]

Banning any party is undemocratic and should not happen in any free society. If those extremist parties have any chance of gaining political power through popular vote: you have much more serious problem than that party.

[Moruo]

One thing to say.

i thought communists support political freedom?
i am not communist thats why we burned our far-right party
ps:i am neither capitalist, dictatur hooray

[Great Nepal]

People should be able to express their beliefs and perspective, regardless of what they are.

No, they shouldn't and they aren't, luckily.
Some opinions can't be allowed expression. Expecially hypocritical opinions that try to exploit democratic rights to destroy democracy and rights.

Like using freedom of speech to trample on other's freedom of speech?

[New Chalcedon]

Lawmakers in Berlin have been given the green light to file a complaint with the country's highest court seeking to ban the far-right National Democratic Party (NPD) following a Friday vote by Germany's upper legislative chamber, the Bundesrat, on the issue.

The approval of the legal bid to ban the right-wing extremist party comes after governors of the 16 states had already agreed on supporting the measure earlier this month. They recommended that the Bundesrat, which represents Germany's 16 states, do the same.

"We are convinced that the NPD is unconstitutional," said Christine Lieberknecht, the governor of the eastern state of Thuringia and a member of Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU), who added that the far-right party was aggressively pursuing its goals.

http://www.spiegel.de/international/ger ... 72969.html

Opinions?

Mine? I don't think it's a terrible idea, but it does increase the risk of them organizing underground.

How dare people vote for something other than the approved, mainstream (and useless) political parties?

*gasp*

How dare they?

Perhaps instead of acting to squish this "NDP", the powers-that-are in Germany could instead sit up & take note that they're losing their connection to the German electorate and do something about it. But that would require upsetting their comfy neo-liberal corporate gravy-trains, so we all know that's not going to happen. Instead, they'll sit there and continue to use the law as a bludgeon against anyone who doesn't conform to their lovely little setup.

[The Blaatschapen]

Everyone in Europe isn't in a great spot right now.

I think ze Tschermans are doing fairly well relative to the rest of us, but that isn't saying very much, and besides which, they're the ones bailing the rest of us out.

Speak for yourself. They're not bailing us.

Or at least, not directly. They're our biggest trading partner.

[Risottia]

No, they shouldn't and they aren't, luckily.
Some opinions can't be allowed expression. Expecially hypocritical opinions that try to exploit democratic rights to destroy democracy and rights.

Like using freedom of speech to trample on other's freedom of speech?

Exactly.
Or freedom of "being what they are" to get to the power and start taking away the rights of some people "because of what THEY are".

There's no such thing as an absolute right to free speech.