Page 9 - ARUBA TODAY

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WORLD NEWS Tuesday 4 sepTember 2018

German authorities take aim at far-right party's youth wing

By CHRISTOPH NOELTING promoted with the hashtag
FRANK JORDANS #WeAreMore and broad-
Associated Press cast live online.
CHEMNITZ, Germany (AP) "The concert is highly sym-
— German authorities plan bolic because it sends a
to step up surveillance of signal that we'll mobilize
the far-right Alternative for people from across the
Germany amid growing whole country, if necessary,
concern the third-largest so Chemnitz isn't aban-
party in parliament is clos- doned to the right," said Jo-
ing ranks with extremist hannes Staemmler, a politi-
groups. cal scientist who grew up in
Activists for AfD, the na- Saxony and has focused his
tionalist party's German research on eastern Ger-
acronym, marched in the many.
eastern city of Chemnitz Former Foreign Minister Sig-
alongside leading figures in mar Gabriel tweeted on
anti-migrant group PEGIDA Monday that "the far-right
and members of the area's terror in Chemnitz is not a
militant neo-Nazi scene in Saxon problem, it's a Ger-
the past week, after two man one."
refugees were arrested in a A man holds a poster reading 'courage citizen' during a demonstration for democracy and Gabriel criticized Germa-
German citizen's fatal stab- against extremism in Chemnitz, eastern Germany, Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018. ny's political establishment
bing. Associated Press for being too passive when
"Parts of AfD are openly it comes to combating far-
acting against the Consti- the views of AfD's youth third in the 2017 national Government officials urged right support and urged
tution," Justice Minister Ka- wing in the city-state as election. Germans who are upset them to visit towns with sim-
tarina Barley told the RND "pure racism." Officials are particularly over the killing to distance mering anti-migrant senti-
media group Monday. "We AfD immediately an- concerned about its strat- themselves from the neo- ment.
need to treat them like oth- nounced that it would dis- egy in eastern Germany, Nazis who performed the "I think it would be good if
er enemies of the Constitu- solve the two youth sec- where AfD's Kalbitz said the stiff-armed "Hitler salute," as many representatives
tion and observe them ac- tions in question to avert party hopes to become the chanted "Foreigners out" as possible — not only in
cordingly." harm to the party and in- strongest force after state and harassed journalists Chemnitz but everywhere
Authorities in northern Ger- sisted its aims were demo- elections next year. covering the demonstra- — go to places where we
many's Bremen and Lower cratic. Saxony — where Chemnitz tions. think the citizens are not
Saxony said they have be- Andreas Kalbitz , a member is located — has an en- "If one doesn't think this agreeing with our state,"
gun monitoring the party's of the party's national lead- trenched neo-Nazi scene way, it would be good to he said in an interview with
youth wings in the two ership, accused other polit- and AfD has done particu- draw a clear line and dis- Germany's daily Bild news-
states. ical parties of panicking in larly well there. tance oneself from those paper.
Boris Pistorius, Lower Sax- the face of AfD's electoral The party encouraged last who are doing that," said Speaking publicly for the
ony's interior minister, said success. week's protests, which drew Steffen Seibert, German first time, Hillig's widow told
the decision wasn't re- AfD's rise since its founding thousands following the Chancellor Angela Merkel's the newspaper that "Daniel
lated to recent events in five years ago has shaken Aug. 26 slaying of 35-year- spokesman. would have never wanted"
Chemnitz. It was based Germany's establishment old carpenter Daniel Hillig In an organized response to the protests triggered by his
on the Young Alternative's and called into question in Chemnitz. Some of the the far-right events, tens of killing.
anti-democratic goals and the country's post-World demonstrations erupted thousands of people gath- "Daniel was neither left nor
close links to the Identitar- War II consensus that far- into violence between far- ered Monday in Chemnitz right," his widow, identified
ian Movement, a white na- right parties have no place right marchers and coun- for a free, open-air con- only as Bianca T., told Bild.
tionalist group that's been in the mainstream. ter-protesters . cert by some of Germany's Expressing shock about the
under surveillance in the The party, bolstered by A 22-year-old Iraqi citizen best-known bands. The way the far right was ex-
state for four years, Pistorius widespread unease in Ger- and a 23-year-old Syrian show was part of an effort ploiting his death, she said:
said. many about the influx of citizen were arrested on to encourage young Ger- "I looked at the events on
His counterpart in Bremen, more than 1 million refu- suspicion of manslaughter mans to stand up against Saturday night — this was
Ulrich Maeurer, described gees since 2015, placed in Hillig's death, police said. far-right extremism. It was not about Daniel at all."q