Judgment on Compact: Fate on June 24th in the Leipzig court!

Judgment on Compact: Fate on June 24th in the Leipzig court!

Leipzig, Deutschland - On June 24, the Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig will announce its judgment on the ban on the right -wing extremist magazine "Compact". The presiding judge Ingo Kraft made this announcement at the end of a two -day oral hearing that dealt with the justification of the ban. The then Federal Minister of the Interior Nancy Faeser (SPD) ordered the ban in July 2024 and described the magazine as the "central mouthpiece of the right -wing extremist scene". This led to the immediate setting of the entire print and online offer of "Compact".

In August 2024, editor -in -chief Jürgen Elsässer and his team achieved partial success in the urgent procedure; The ban was temporarily suspended so that the magazine could continue to appear. The procedure that is now continued in the main procedure takes place in the first and last instance.

core questions of the negotiation

A central topic of the negotiation was whether the statements in "Compact" are considered protected expressions of opinion or as an anti -constitutional. In this context, the relationship between the “Compact” makers and Martin Sellner, a well-known Austrian right-wing extremist, was particularly discussed. Sellner is a regular author and is described by Alsatians as important for the target group of the magazine, although Alsatian distances himself from its content and describes him as brave and incorruptible.

The process representative of the Federal Ministry of the Interior argued with over 240 pages for statements that are supposed to run counter to the principles of human dignity, the principle of democracy and the rule of law. This includes problematic terms such as "pass Germans" and formulations that imply a "strike against the German people". Alsatian rejected these allegations and described controversial text passages as an exception, whereby he referred to metaphors.

relevance of freedom of expression

The discussion about the ban on "Compact" raises fundamental questions about freedom of expression in Germany. Freedom of expression, protected by the Basic Law (Art. 5 Para. 1 S. 1 GG), is a central element of political speech and constituting for democracy. However, interventions in freedom of expression are justified under certain conditions, especially if they pose a danger to public order or human dignity. The weighing process between freedom of expression and the protection of the personality is repeatedly discussed in the current case law of the Federal Constitutional Court, especially at a time when the risks through hate speech increase.

The judgment of the Federal Administrative Court could have far -reaching implications for the future handling of expressions of opinion in Germany. After the judgment, Jürgen Elsässer could turn to the Federal Constitutional Court in Karlsruhe, although it should be noted that this would not have any suspensive effect. The ongoing debate about the limits of freedom of expression and its effects on society remains of great importance.