Last weekend, around a million protesters took to the streets in various German cities to protest against the far right. However, even this new wave of civil commitment is unlikely to stop the astronomical rise of the AfD party.
Following a report by investigative newsroom Correctiv on a meeting between representatives of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) and neo-Nazis, where the arbitrary deportation of German citizens with migration backgrounds was discussed, Germany is in disarray.
The protests, which are still ongoing, reached their peak this weekend with 100,000 protesters gathered in Berlin, and over a million taking to the streets across the country.
While the culture of protest in Germany has long been reserved for the political fringes, the demonstrations of recent weeks have been dominated by people from the political centre, often described as the “silent majority”.
But it seems unlikely that this “silent majority” will be able to halt the rise of the far right. While Germany has been long regarded as a bulwark against far-right parties, the AfD is currently polling at an all-time high of over 22%.
And the AfD seems rather unimpressed with the recent public mobilisation against them.
Instead of tuning down some of their more radical positions, they dropped another bomb yesterday when their party helm, Alice Weidel, announced that she would push for a Brexit-style referendum to leave the EU.
It is also unclear whether the parties at the political centre can capitalise on this new movement against the rise of the right. The German social democrats have, for instance, already made the fight against right-wing extremism and the defence of democracy the main angle for their campaign for the upcoming European elections.
Not to use this momentum would be a fatal mistake. Nonetheless, it will be an incredibly difficult task to mobilise voters over this salient issue, as Chancellor Olaf Scholz experienced a week prior at one of the first protests where the organisers accused him of hijacking the event.
“These are also protests against a shift to the right in the democratic part of politics, against the normalisation of right-wing rhetoric and programmes,” one of the main activists behind the protests, Luisa Neubauer, scolded Scholz, who she accused of shifting to the right on many policies.
It seems thus rather doubtful whether the SPD will be able to use this mobilisation to their advantage. While discussing the danger of fascism in the Bundestag and the European Parliament shows awareness, this top-down approach in trying to reach the public has rarely been effective.
For the democratic forces, it is now highly important to communicate their values credibly and build on the justified outcry, rather than just ride the wave until it fizzles out in a couple of weeks.
If anything, this should be the start of the European election campaign efforts. This is a moment to overcome the current lack of public mobilisation – both for imminent elections and democratic threats that are bigger than bickering among coalition partners.
The revelations of Correctiv were a wake-up call for the German public, but one has yet to see how long it will last. The resulting public outcry, however, should be a wake-up call for all democratic parties to emphasise what is at stake in June.
Otherwise, this battle will be lost before it has even begun.
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The Roundup
The European Commission is set to adopt a decision establishing the European Artificial Intelligence Office, according to a draft document obtained by Euractiv.
Europe’s first-ever Offshore Network Development Plan, published on Tuesday, highlights the huge investment needed to connect offshore wind farms to final consumers, with an estimated 54,000 kilometres of transmission assets expected to be built in European waters by 2050 – almost 1.5 times the equator’s length.
France registered a record number of applications for asylum in 2023, the third-highest number amongst EU countries, after Germany and Spain, according to the French Office for the Protection of Refugees and Stateless Persons (OPFRA).
The European Commission released on Tuesday a proposal to review the timelines for companies to comply with the In Vitro Diagnostic Medical Devices Regulation to ensure availability and avoid shortages.
Alcohol consumption trends have shifted in recent years, with daily consumption declining but occasional binge drinking continues to rise, according to a study published on Tuesday (23 January) by the French health agency SPF, which reflects a similar trend across Europe.
Slovak hospitals are failing to fulfil the minimum recommended eight-hour-a-day skin-to-skin contact for preterm babies, which is considered critical for the survival and development of infants by the World Health Organisation (WHO).
Concerned about the affordability of innovative drugs in the Netherlands, the Dutch Association of Innovative Medicines has called in an open letter for more support for innovative businesses with measures that attract skilled workers and protect the intellectual property they create.
Don’t miss this week’s Transport Brief: EPP group vows to revise combustion engine ban ‘as soon as possible’.
Look out for…
- Informal meeting of justice and home affairs ministers, Wednesday-Friday.
- Commissioner Ylva Johansson hosts EU Port Alliance official launch event in Antwerp on Wednesday.
- Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni delivers closing remarks at the EU Sustainable Investment Summit 2024 on Wednesday.
Views are the author’s
[Edited by Zoran Radosavljevic/Alice Taylor]
Source: euractiv.com
