The Green Party Scandal: Investigation Uncovers Missteps and Questionable Ombuds Process
Commissioner set to cast ballot on the forthcoming document.
Berlin (dpa) - A damaging report on behalf of the Greens' internal commission has shone a harsh light on the handling of fabricated harassment allegations against former Berlin MP, Stefan Gelbhaar. The conclusion: the approach to these allegations was too naive, and mistakes were made.
Consequences for Gelbhaar and the Greens
Last year, allegations against Gelbhaar were brought to light within the federal party's ombuds office. After they became public and a hot media topic, he lost his direct candidacy for the Pankow constituency in the upcoming federal election. Gelbhaar had previously withdrawn from the candidacy on the Berlin Greens' state list.
The report, referring to Gelbhaar as S.G., highlights the damage this scandal has caused for the entire Green Party: "The Shocking events surrounding S.G. have inflicted significant reputational and trust damage on the entire Green Party. It may have also impacted the outcome of the federal election."
The Report: A Closed-Door Affair
The Greens commissioned the investigation on January 30, enlisting the help of former Schleswig-Holstein Minister of Justice Anne Lütkes and the long-standing MP and member of the Bavarian Constitutional Court, Jerzy Montag.
Rumor has it that the report was completed a few weeks ago, but was only published in a 25-page summary, supposedly to protect personal data. The longer, more detailed original version is exclusively available to the federal board, it is said. Gelbhaar himself does not have access to it.
Gelbhaar welcomes the report, expressing his desire for a thorough examination. When discussing the events themselves with the German Press Agency, he stated: "False allegations were made, the principles of the rule of law were not upheld, there were massive breaches of confidentiality, I did not receive the notifications, no opportunity for a statement was created." Furthermore, Gelbhaar added, "The lack of clear regulations and structures made the ombuds procedure a nightmare that did not sufficiently meet the principles of the rule of law."
A Scathing Verdict on the Ombuds Process
Lütkes and Montag deliver a devastating verdict on the existing ombuds structures of the Greens: "The current ombuds procedure suffers from a lack of internal party legitimacy, lack of procedural structures and a procedural order, as well as significant deficits in the rule of law and definition errors." The usage of the ombuds procedure for political purposes was evident. However, it was not even considered that it could potentially be "an organized procedure with a political goal." The goal was clearly apparent—to make it difficult or prevent Gelbhaar's candidacy on the state list. Gelbhaar did not get the opportunity to explain or defend himself in an internal party arbitration procedure.
It should have been evident that several reports about decade-old allegations were received within a very short time—and that directly before the assembly for the establishment of the state list on December 14. However, this does not indicate the truth of the individual reports or the motives of all those who filed them.
The Federal Executive Board of the Greens defends itself against the accusation of handling the allegations against Gelbhaar naively. "Political instrumentalization of the reports was also considered possible from the outset, but could not be the sole guiding factor in the risk assessment given a known ombuds procedure at the federal level and due to the number and range of allegations contained in the reports," it stated. The politically responsible parties at the circle, state, and federal levels have always acted in good faith and according to the information available to them. Women have come forward, including to the commission, and reported experiences and observations that, while not criminally relevant, were perceived as boundary-crossing, inappropriate, or invasive.
"We were structurally overwhelmed, among other things, due to the upcoming federal election," the Federal Executive Board said. Despite the challenging situation at the start of the federal election campaign, "all those involved handled the treatment of the reports with sensitivity and care within their capabilities."
The organization, meaning the party, did not live up to its responsibility to all those involved. "Those affected include Stefan Gelbhaar, as well as those who reported incidents and initially did not receive sufficient trust in their accounts after the false identity of another report was exposed."
Gelbhaar, who won his constituency in Pankow as a direct candidate, is no longer a member of the Bundestag since the February election. His political career has come to an end. In mid-December, he had withdrawn from the state list candidacy, citing unspecified allegations against him at the time.
Further media reports followed at the end of the year. In early January, Gelbhaar lost the repeat election for the direct candidacy. The ARD broadcaster Rundfunk Berlin-Brandenburg (RBB) withdrew parts of its reports on harassment allegations against Gelbhaar in January.
At the core, doubts arose about the identity of one of the women who had guaranteed the broadcaster of the allegations. It was discovered that the RBB had never met the person. Gelbhaar has always denied the allegations. The Berlin Public Prosecutor's Office is investigating the woman in question for suspected defamation.
Following the flawed reporting, the RBB took personnel measures. Editor-in-Chief David Biesinger resigned, and RBB Program Director Katrin Günther also stepped down. The RBB is reportedly facing damages claims from the Green politician in the millions.
The Greens plan to revise their ombuds structures, with details to be presented by a working group. The party congress in November will make a decision. The ombuds procedure in the Gelbhaar case will not be continued.
The chairpersons of the directly affected Berlin state association of the Greens, Nina Stahr and Philmon Ghirmai, stated that the state association has already begun developing complaint structures and points of contact. A care concept will be presented in the fall.
The investigation into the Green Party's handling of the Stefan Gelbhaar scandal has raised concerns about the party's policy-and-legislation and politics, as well as their general-news operations. The report, commissioned by the Greens, has exposed significant deficits in the rule of law, lack of internal party legitimacy, and a lack of procedural structures within the ombuds process, potentially leading to political misuse.
