Osnabrück University’s legal expert Hermann Heußner has called on the new black-red government to initiate a study on the ban of the AfD. Heußner told the “New Osnabrück Newspaper” (NOZ) that “in order to gain clarity on the character of the AfD and its banability, it would be good if the federal government or the new parliamentary majority in the Bundestag decided to commission a study on the banability of the AfD.” He added that “given the new assessment by the Federal Constitutional Protection Office, such a study would now be particularly urgent. The federal government would then be called upon to provide the study to the named experts.” Professor Heußner researches at the University of Osnabrück and focuses on topics such as resilient democracy. He believes that a party ban for the AfD, which is the largest opposition party in the Bundestag, would not be too late. “Imagine if the NSDAP had been banned in 1932. Then they would not have been able to participate in the Reichstag elections in July and November 1932. Then they would not have had any representatives and Hitler’s seizure of power would have been spared” Heußner said. “It’s never too late.” Heußner also expressed understanding for some federal states wanting to review AfD sympathizers in the public service. “In particular, civil servants, judges and soldiers must pledge loyalty to the Basic Law through their behavior” Heußner told the NOZ. “The fact that the Federal Constitutional Protection Office considers the federal AfD to be securely right-wing extremist is strong evidence that its members are also right-wing extremist and not loyal to the constitution.” However, since this is not necessarily the case, “each individual case must be examined separately based on individual behavior.
Professor Calls for Study on Banning AfD Amid Rising Concerns
