The German federal government sees no moderation in the newly formed AfD youth organisation compared with the earlier “Jungen Alternative” (JA).
The view is based on the Interior Ministry’s reply to a small parliamentary question (Kleine Anfrage) from Green Party MP Marlene Schönberger, a question that the “Spiegel” has reported on.
In its answer the ministry pointed out a “high personnel continuity” between the two groups, particularly among members of the federal board. It also said that the new name “Generation Deutschland” carries a “content‑ideological continuity” with the old group. The ministry said this follows from statements made at the founding meeting in Gießen in November. The remarks were described as “actual indications for efforts against the constitutional democratic order” – i.e. anti‑constitutional. They were said to express an “ethnically‑derived state‑people concept” that could lead to “calls for legal discrimination of German citizens with a migration background”.
The ministry also highlighted a number of links between the new youth members and “other extremist organisations”. It lists “contacts with online activists relevant to the domestic‑intelligence service”. Several members of the new federal board have “served or are serving” as staff for AfD Members of Parliament. Because the new bylaws state that Generation Deutschland is a “legally dependent part” of the AfD, the parent party must take responsibility – a point the federal government stresses.
Schönberger, who sits on the Interior Committee, called for concrete consequences. She said the government finally has to acknowledge what civil society has long known, that the new youth organisation is a “right‑wing extremist label scam” and that the government must now act. She urges it to work with the states on measures ranging from weapons and civil‑service law to an AfD ban procedure.
The AfD had re‑structured its youth network last year to make it easier to manage and to protect it from state measures.