2024-05-01 09:06:36
Some of the most prominent AfD politicians are facing serious accusations. t-online has summarized these for you.
Shortly before the elections for the European Parliament in June, the AfD is in serious trouble. Although the party is in second place according to the latest polls, several scandals are shaking the AfD. The allegations range from the use of anti-constitutional slogans to espionage. t-online gives you an overview of the allegations.
Petr Bystron: Money blessing from Moscow
Petr Bystron, who is in second place on the list for the European elections, is suspected of having accepted payments from the pro-Russian news portal “Voice of Europe”. Information in the interest of Russian and pro-Russian donors is said to have been disseminated via this platform. Read more about the platform here.
Czech authorities presented audio recordings showing that 20,000 euros in cash were handed over to Bystron in a car. German security authorities have so far only received written information about this incident from the Czech Republic. Bystron denies receiving funds from a pro-Russian network. Russia also denies having made payments to Bystron.
The federal executive committee of his party is behind him for the time being, but shortly after the allegations became known, the party’s top candidate, Maximilian Krah, asked him to refrain from campaigning for the time being.
Maximilian Krah and the Chinese spy
The top candidate for the European elections, Maximilian Krah, also sees himself exposed to massive pressure. There are several allegations against him.
A close colleague of Krah was arrested on suspicion of spying for the People’s Republic of China. The Federal Prosecutor General accuses this employee of having provided China with information directly from parliamentary operations. The accused is now in custody. This could be seen as “acting as an agent for a foreign secret service in a particularly serious case.” Read the assessment of a secret service expert here.
But Krah himself is also in the spotlight due to his proximity to China and his involvement in the scandal surrounding the online platform “Voice of Europe” uncovered by the Czech secret service. Krah and other AfD MPs gave interviews to the portal. At the end of last year, the FBI questioned Krah about possible payments from sources close to the Kremlin. Krah denies ever accepting money. Neither from China nor from Russia. Read more about the topic here.
Björn Höcke and the Nazi slogans
Björn Höcke, AfD parliamentary group leader in Thuringia, is accused of using banned Nazi vocabulary. The public prosecutor’s office has brought charges against him because he is said to have publicly used the license plates of a former National Socialist organization.
Specifically, it is about the use of a banned slogan by the Storm Department (SA) of the NSDAP in two speeches. In a speech in 2021, he is said to have shouted the SA’s central slogan “Everything for Germany”, and at the end of 2023 he used the same saying again at an AfD party event in Gera.
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There are videos of both events, and the court must now determine whether the slightly modified SA slogan used by Höcke is “permissible and covered by freedom of expression.” From a legal point of view, this saying falls under the criminal offense of using the symbols of unconstitutional organizations and is therefore prohibited.
However, Höcke is likely to deny in court that he had this intention. In a television duel during the state elections in Thuringia, Höcke denied knowing the SA slogans. Considering the fact that Höcke worked as a history teacher before his career in the AfD, this statement can be questioned. It is not the first time that Höcke has had to answer in court. Read more about Höcke’s previous trials here.