Corona protests: Faeser now wants to crack down on right-wing extremists - "don't give up a millimeter!"

Created: 12/17/2021, 12:18 PM

Nancy Faeser (SPD) comments on the Prime Minister's government statement.

© Andreas Arnold / dpa

When she took office, Nancy Faeser made it clear that right-wing extremism is currently the greatest threat.

Now she wants to take steps.

Berlin - The new Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) * is considered a big surprise for Scholz.

With her, for the first time in the history of the Federal Republic of Germany, a woman takes over the Federal Ministry of the Interior.

Right at the beginning, the SPD politician announced tough action against right-wing extremists *.

Now she is targeting the instrumentalization of the corona protests. During the demonstrations against the Corona * measures, "in many cases right-wing extremists are on the road trying to take advantage of a crisis," said the SPD politician in a conversation with

published on Friday

. “They are pursuing their own goals that have nothing to do with the pandemic.

"We have to act with all severity against this small group, with every means of the rule of law," said Faeser.

“You can't give up a millimeter.” Even in the debate about a general vaccination requirement *, the state shouldn't show any consideration for extremists.

"If we become convinced that we will not get out of the pandemic without this step, we must not allow ourselves to be intimidated and deterred by a radical minority," said Faeser.

Corona protests: Federal Interior Minister Faeser announces tough action against right-wing extremism

The interior minister also announces that she wants to force the messenger service Telegram to comply with the law. "There is open hatred and agitation spread," Faeser told the

. "It cannot be that an app operator ignores our laws." The ministry is currently examining whether the pressure can be increased via platforms such as Google or Apple, said Faeser. "These companies have the Telegram application in their app stores and could take them off the market if Telegram permanently violates the rules," said the SPD politician.

In addition, the Federal Republic could approach the United Arab Emirates with other European countries, where Telegram is based.

At the same time, the domestic pressure to investigate online propagandists * must be increased.

"It must be clear to everyone: Anyone who spreads hatred and agitation on the Internet is dealing with the police," said Faeser.

"The pressure to be searched against extremists must be the same throughout Germany."

New Federal Minister of the Interior Nancy Faeser: Effective controls of gun possession

Faeser is also striving for more effective controls on gun owners.

Regular controls are already planned, "but they must also take place," said the SPD politician to the

.

"There is no point in passing a strict gun law if there are no personnel in the municipal regulatory agencies to enforce it."

She also stated: "Anyone who is psychologically conspicuous or has obviously radicalized are not allowed to own weapons, especially not legally".

The coalition will talk about whether additional evidence of reliability should be requested before weapons permits are issued and how communication between the authorities can be improved.