The Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW) has strongly condemned the recent decision by the Social Democratic Party (SPD) to pursue a potential ban of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.
BSW leader Sahra Wagenknecht, in a statement to the “Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung” characterized the SPD’s actions as “embarrassing” and detrimental to democratic principles. She argued that the push for a ban by a party experiencing declining voter support demonstrates a lack of alternatives when facing a more successful political competitor.
Wagenknecht further expressed concern, stating that the increasingly casual calls for exclusion, surveillance and prohibitions signal “a worrisome tendency towards authoritarianism within the so-called democratic center”. She warned that such strategies risk alienating voters and strengthening the AfD’s appeal.
Rejecting the SPD’s perspective, Wagenknecht asserted that it is not the SPD’s responsibility to remove the AfD from parliament through legal proceedings. She suggested that the party should instead re-evaluate its own policies, citing broken promises regarding issues like minimum wage and electricity tax reductions.
The BSW leader emphasized the essential role of elected officials to address public discontent and social divisions through effective policymaking – a commitment she believes the SPD has neglected.