A German court convicted the prominent far-right leader for the second time in seven weeks Bjorn Hawke Use of banned Nazi slogans.
Conviction – At the time Far right On the rise in Europe — This is the latest in a series of legal setbacks for Hoch, leader of the nationalist Alternative for Germany party in the eastern German state of Thuringia.
After a three-day trial, Hawke was found on Monday to have willfully ignored a ban on using the Nazi slogan “All for Germany” and was fined 16,900 euros, or about $18,100, for using the slogan late last year.
The decision came after Mr Höcke was fined 13,000 EUR In mid-May, he was arrested for using the slogan in a 2021 campaign speech.
Judges in the city of Halle found that Mr. Höch deliberately directed a group of supporters to complete the slogan and engrave it on knives of Nazi party paramilitary forces.
“When I see what is happening in Europe, we still have to prevent old symbols from the Nazi era from being accepted again,” Judge Jan Stengel said as he read out the verdict, according to local media. News reportStill, the punishment fell short of the suspended sentence and two-year ban on political speech sought by prosecutors.
Germany has banned the use of certain phrases, greetings, uniforms and symbols associated with the Nazis.
While Mr. Hawke and his lawyers denied any knowledge of the phrase’s dark history during Mr. Halle’s first trial, his defense lawyers argued this time that the phrase should not be banned. And despite a video as evidence showing Mr. Hawke motioning to the crowd to finish the phrase, his lawyers also argued that the crowd’s reaction was unexpected.
In his half-hour closing remarks, Mr Hawke said: One of the most extreme voices in the far-right partyHe said the trial was politically motivated and aimed at suppressing his political speech, and called on his party to launch a parliamentary investigation into the country’s judicial system.
Germany’s Alternative for Germany made solid progress in the European elections. No direct influence on the German federal or state governments But they are seen as a barometer of public sentiment in Germany. The far-right party won 15.9% of the vote nationwide. In Thuringia, where Hoch leads, the party won 30.7% of the vote, 7.5% more than its nearest mainstream rival, putting the AfD on track to make significant gains in state elections in September.
