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POLITICS

AfD complain of ‘Gestapo methods’ after hotels ban their leaders

At the end of June, around 600 Alternative for Germany (AfD) party delegates will descend upon the Bavarian city of Augsburg. But the decision by two hotels to cancel bookings by AfD members has thrown plans into confusion.

AfD complain of ‘Gestapo methods’ after hotels ban their leaders
Ralph Weber (AfD). Photo: DPA

Among the AfD delegates who have been rejected by hotels is Ralph Weber, who up until Sunday believed he would be staying at the “Drei Mohren” hotel. 

Weber, a party representative in the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern regional parliament, was told at the weekend that his reservation had been cancelled, leaving him and his wife without a place to stay during the conference at the end of June.

Four weeks after making the booking, Weber was told that he wasn’t allowed to stay due to his membership of the AfD, which is known for its anti-Islam stance.

Whilst this shocked the AfD, Weber’s situation isn’t unique.

Other party members were informed by Augsburg’s “Holiday Inn Express” that they were barred from staying there; Die Welt reported that the letter stated the members (including senior figures such as Alexander Gauland, Beatrix von Storch Alice Weidel and Kay Gottschalk) couldn’t stay due to “controversial public statements by the persons mentioned, made against people based on their origin or descent”.

Weber told Die Welt the cancellation reminded him of “Gestapo methods”, and Gottschalk said that it is “worrying and symbolises a toxic climate”.

Wider societal debate

The issues surrounding the AfD’s stay in Augsburg fit into a wider political and ethical debate about how to deal with the AfD. While some liberal commentators argue that the AfD should not be victimized, others, particularly on the left of the debate, claim that they have forfeited their right to equal treatment.

Alexander Gauland, co-founder and leader of the party, was told at the beginning of June that he would no longer be invited onto Frank Plasberg’s talkshow “Hart aber Fair”.

Plasberg rescinded Gaulan’s invitation, because “someone who rationalises National Socialist crimes cannot be a guest on Hart aber Fair. Therefore, Alexander Gauland will not be invited back in the future”.

This followed Gauland’s speech to the “Junge Alternative” (an AfD youth organisation) in Seebach, Thuringia, where he argued that “Hitler and the Nazis are just one drop of bird shit in over 1,000 years of successful German history”.

Prior to this, Gauland had said that “yes, we accept responsibility for those twelve years… but we have a glorious history and that lasted longer than those damn twelve years”.

While Gauland's comments were widely condemned, many commentators thought that it was a step in the direction of censorship to no longer invite the leader of Germany's third largest part onto one of the country's most-watched talk shows.

What do you think: was the hotel within its rights to cancel the bookings of the AfD members, or do you think this decision was undemocratic?

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POLITICS

Scholz calls on coalition to ‘pull ourselves together’

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Saturday called on his fractious governing coalition to "pull ourselves together" following a dismal showing in EU parliament elections last week.

Scholz calls on coalition to 'pull ourselves together'

In power since the end of 2021, the three parties in government — Scholz’s Social Democrats (SPD), the Greens and the liberal FDP — have been at loggerheads on a wide range of issues including climate measures and budget spending.

“I think that this is one of the entirely justified criticisms of many citizens, namely that there is too much debate” within the coalition, Scholz told German television channel ZDF on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Italy.

“We need to pull ourselves together and stick together to reach agreements,” he added.

“The people have the right to demand that things change,” Scholz told public broadcaster ARD.

The three parties in the coalition suffered a severe defeat in the European elections, with the SPD achieving its worst result in a national election since 1949.

Subsequently, Scholz has faced mounting criticism within his own party.

On Saturday, however, Scholz told ZDF and ARD that he was “sure” that he would be the SPD’s next candidate for the chancellorship in the parliamentary elections scheduled for autumn 2025.

In the very short term, a new test awaits the coalition, which must reach an agreement on the 2025 budget by the beginning of July.

The FDP’s finance minister is opposed to any exceptions to the rules limiting debt and to any tax increases.

On the other hand, the SPD and the Greens are opposed to cuts in social welfare or climate protection.

The debate is also focused on increasing the resources allocated to the German army.

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