Germany’s ruling parties have criticised the reviving Alternative for Germany (AfD) opposition party over a report that extremists recently met to discuss deporting millions of immigrants, including some with German citizenship, fuelling protests in recent days.
The AfD claimed that it had no relation to the gathering and took no responsibility for what was discussed at the meeting.
Last week, German non-profit independent newsroom Correctiv reported on an alleged meeting in November that it said was attended by representatives of the extremist Identitarian Movement and the nationally oriented Alternative for Germany, or AfD (Alternative für Deutschland), party.
National polls currently reveal that AfD is backed by more than 20 per cent of citizens, ranking the party as the second most popular among the German population, beneath the main opposition bloc and above Chancellor Olaf Scholz‘s ruling coalition.
The party holds much stronger support in the eastern regions, where state elections are scheduled for September.
AfD denies any connection to the meeting, declaring that it has neither organisational nor financial ties to the event and is therefore not responsible for what has been discussed there. The party claims that the attending members did so purely in a personal capacity.
At the same time, AfD co-chair Alice Weidel bid farewell to advisor Roland Hartwig, who was present at the meeting, at the same time decrying the reporting by Correctiv.
Party leader Bernd Baumann complained that the major parties were “falsifying our demands, particularly on the issue of ‘remigration'”. He also stated that AfD faced a “devious campaign by politicians and journalists from the ruined left-green class.”
Little private debating clubs are being blown up into secret meetings that are a danger to the public.
At the same time, many of AfD’s opponents have spoken out against banning the party on the basis of allegations of participating in the extremist meeting, expressing doubts over the success of the process.
