The Thuringian AFD boss Björn Höcke has failed in front of the Administrative Court of Cologne with an emergency application against the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution. According to the court, he wanted to let the president of the authority, Thomas Haldenwang, a statement from a SPIEGEL interview. Haldenwang had said, "The 'wing' is becoming more and more extremist."
Höcke is the most prominent representative of the ethnic-nationalist "wing" network of the AfD, which has been classified by the constitutional protection since January as extremism "suspected case". Höcke had justified his request with the sentence that affected his chances at the state election in Thuringia next Sunday, in the Höcke as a leading candidate.
The Cologne administrative court has now rejected his urgent application on Thursday. Haldenwang's sentence refers to the "wing" and not the humps personally. In the SPIEGEL interview, the head of the constitutional protection said expressly: "I ask for your understanding that I can not comment on a top candidate shortly before a state election for legal reasons."
Content justified
Haldenwang had spoken in another interview about another leader of the "wing", Andreas Kalbitz, who once had contacts to far-right groups such as the "Heimattreuen German Youth".
"For me it is not clear that he has distanced himself from his past," said the chief of the protection of the SPIEGEL. He continues: "He is like Höcke a leading head of the 'wing' within the AfD, which we have classified as suspicious case several months ago.We see nothing that would dissuade us from this assessment, on the contrary: The 'wing' is always extremist. "
Even if the sentence attacked by Höcke was voiced shortly before a state election, it was proportionate, the administrative court argued. He was also substantively justified, as showed excerpts from representatives of the AFD "wing", which had presented the Constitutional Protection. According to the law, the Federal Office may comment publicly on allegations of suspected suspected offenses.
Björn Höcke can appeal the decision. About this then the Higher Administrative Court Münster would have to decide.