When protection of the Constitution turns into State security

by Vera Lengsfeld*

(29 May 2021) Ed. In this article, Vera Lengsfeld warns of a dangerous dismantling of the law in Germany. A keen, lifelong observer of law and democracy, she was already known for her astuteness, courage and sincerity in the former GDR, thanks to her civil engagement under very difficult conditions.

Ever since Thomas Haldenwang became its president in 2018, the German Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution has been transformed from an institution whose goal is to protect the Constitution, and thus the rule of law, into an instrument for protecting government policy. The most recent step in this direction is the most wide-ranging so far.

It has thus been decreed that so-called Querdenker (lateral thinkers) – whoever they may be, for they are neither a party, nor an organization, nor an association – must be kept under observation across the country. But who are they exactly? If one looks up the word Querdenker on Wikipedia, one finds the following references [on the German page]: the name of a German-language business magazine; the German name for the board game 20 Questions; a person who uses creative, or lateral, thinking in order to solve problems or instigate ideas; and, lastly, an initiative founded in Stuttgart to protest against protective measures linked to the Covid-19 pandemic in Germany.

So just who is the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution now keeping under observation nationwide? People who are seeking solutions to the overwhelming range of problems that exist in Merkel’s Germany? Because what our society needs is not individuals who contribute with their ideas and participate actively, but foot soldiers who show obedience, that is, a spirit of submission? And those who do not want to be subservient but rather act as responsible citizens should be watched over and punished?

For all this to be possible, the Federal Ministry of the Interior announced the creation of a new category of misdeed called “delegitimization of the State.”

This means that the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution can now, for instance, collect data on people and groups who are randomly labelled as Querdenker. That is, anyone who draws the attention of the security services or politicians. Any criticism, however justified, of the government’s increasingly bizarre, counterproductive and anti-constitutional measures can now lead to surveillance by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution. It is thus an instrument for massive intimidation of the population. For example, actors and producers who have not yet withdrawn the videos they published on social media with the hashtag #allesdichtmachen (in which they sarcastically called for everything to be shut down) are being advised to do so as soon as possible, so as not to come under observation.

What the authorities fear, allegedly, is that the conspiracy theories that were rampant during the protests against anti-Covid measures will not go away, even after the end of the pandemic. Since the Querdenker did not slot into any of the known threats monitored by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution – such as right-wing extremism, left-wing extremism and Islamism – the new category of “delegitimization of the State related to protection of the Constitution” was created.

This new categorization means that proceedings can be initiated against such people based on suspected or proven extremism. So Querdenker are not extremists because they set cars on fire, smash shop windows, attack restaurants and bookstores with butyric acid or, as recently happened in Thuringia, set fire to buildings where “rightists” meet or physically attack politicians. They are not extremists because they attack foreigners or their accommodation, or because they drive trucks into Christmas markets, slip into public festivals with backpack bombs, or maim or kill unfaithful wives.

They are extremists without committing extremist acts because, by definition, criticizing a policy and the measures imposed by it is considered extremist. This opens the door wide to arbitrariness. Protection of the Constitution as it was intended by the creators of our Basic Law no longer exists. It has become a tool for oppression of the population. The fact that this is not only happening but that it is also publicly proclaimed and disseminated by the traditional media, uncritically and even approvingly, shows how far Merkel’s Germany has strayed from the rule of law.

S/he who is silent is taken to agree!

* Vera Lengsfeld was born in the GDR in 1952. She studied history and philosophy. From the 1970s, she was active in the opposition to the SED regime and was part of the peace and environmental movement. Because of her civil rights involvement, she was expelled from the SED, banned from working and travelling, arrested and finally deported to the West. On November 9, the day the Berlin Wall fell, she returned to the GDR. She worked on the Round Table constitutional committee and was a member of the first and last freely elected People’s Chamber of the GDR. Even after German reunification, she continued her work to promote democracy, peace and justice. From 1990 to 2005 she was a member of the German Bundestag. Today she is a freelance writer. Throughout, she has remained true to her principles and unwavering in her commitment.

Source: https://vera-lengsfeld.de/2021/04/28/aus-verfassungsschutz-wird-staatssicherheit/?utm_source=mailpoet&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=NL-Post-Notifications
First published on April 28, 2021

(Translation “Swiss Standppoint”)