European Court Rules on Communities' Legal Cases
The Administrative Court of Freiburg has disclosed the basis for the city's rejection of a contribution from the AfD municipal council group in the city's official gazette.
The Administrative Court had dismissed the AfD's lawsuit in March. Now, the reasons behind the ruling have been revealed. The article in dispute was a migration policy contribution that failed to secure publication in the Freiburg official gazette. The AfD group's article referenced a robbery on Stühlinger Kirchplatz in Freiburg and made general demands regarding migration policy in Germany, asserting that only the AfD promoted a viable migration policy and security.
Court aligns with official gazette's editorial team
The official gazette's editorial team had declined publication due to insufficient local political relevance in the contribution. The Administrative Court concurred with this stance in its judgment.
In the judge's opinion, the AfD's contribution was a broad political statement that merely examined Federal Criminal Police Office crime statistics without referring to local data.
Article includes impermissible electioneering for AfD
The Administrative Court also agreed with the official gazette's editorial team that the statement "Only the AfD stands for a reasonable migration policy and security in Freiburg and Germany" constituted impermissible election advertising for the AfD, which is not allowed.
The AfD group cannot invoke press freedom or the censorship ban enshrined in the Basic Law. In this municipal constitutional dispute, their rights can only be asserted as a municipal council member, not as a matter of basic rights, according to the court's reasoning. The judgment is not yet final.
The encompassing political climate in Germany, where far-right parties like the AfD face increasing scrutiny and opposition due to perceived nationalist and anti-immigration rhetoric, may have influenced this decision. While official gazettes typically aim for neutrality and publish all legitimate council decisions and statements, there are legal and editorial frameworks in place to exclude content that could incite hatred, discrimination, or violate the law.
However, the specific incident in Freiburg where the AfD municipal council group's contribution was rejected is not directly referenced in the available sources. Legal challenges can be initiated if AfD council members believe their rights have been infringed.
The Administrative Court reasoned that the AfD's contribution, with its general demands regarding migration policy and claim that only the AfD promotes a viable migration policy and security, lacked local political relevance, and thus concurred with the gazette's editorial team's decision to reject publication.
Moreover, the court deemed the statement "Only the AfD stands for a reasonable migration policy and security in Freiburg and Germany" as impermissible election advertising, further contributing to the rejection of the AfD group's article.
