The President of the German Fire Brigade Federation, Hartmut Ziebs from Schwelm in North Rhine-Westphalia, has apparently received at least two threatening e-mails. One determined on suspicion of insult and threat, said a spokesman for the police state security in Hagen the SPIEGEL.
Ziebs has repeatedly warned against right-wing national tendencies in the AfD and a possible infiltration of the fire department. According to media reports, this could be one of the reasons why five out of seven vice-presidents of the association requested Ziebs's resignation mid-month. It has been "deprived of confidence for further cooperation," it said in a letter that had become public without giving reasons.
"Of course I'm worried"
The police did not comment on the question of who is the sender of the current threatening e-mails, for tactical reasons. According to the "Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland" (RND), which had first reported on the threats, comes one of the news of "an address of a volunteer fire department in Dortmund."
He had also received some offensive messages before, said Ziebs according to the report. But with the threats, they would have reached a new level. "Of course I'm worried that something could actually happen at my house," he said. According to RND, the letters say, among other things: "You a piece of shit are flogged daily and hunted without protective gear as the first man into the fire."
On the other hand, he also receives a lot of support, said Ziebs. He said he would not be intimidated: "It drives me more, now I will fight even more for the fact that the fire brigade is not infiltrated by right-wing national forces."
Cancellation claim without naming reasons
In a written statement, the five signatories announced shortly after the announcement of the resignation claims that they wanted to make it clear that they were "clearly and clearly against racism, intolerance, discrimination and xenophobia and right-wing extremism and parties of this spectrum" position and in this respect agree with President Ziebs be.
Ziebs wrote in a statement on Facebook on Thursday, he had no concrete reasons why he was no longer in agreement with his administration. However, he was accused of violating party political neutrality. As a result, he was asked to resign.
He feels obliged to this neutrality requirement, wrote Ziebs. However, it should be questioned "if a party or parts of this party leave the rule of law". In particular, this is the case, "if our concerns grow that right-wing and anti-democratic forces could infiltrate the German fire departments." He had done no more than publicly expressing this concern. He would continue his office and stand for democratic vote, announced Ziebs.