Landmark German ruling to cut far-right party funding fuels debate on AfD
KARLSRUHE/BERLIN Germany, Jan 23 (Reuters) – Germany can cut off public funding to the radical right-wing party Die Heimat, the Constitutional Court said on Tuesday in a landmark ruling which stirred up a debate on whether a similar step could be taken against the nationalist AfD party.
The court in Karlsruhe justified its decision to stop state funding and tax relief for six years by saying the National Democratic Party (NPD) and its successor, Die Heimat, aimed to undermine or eliminate the country’s democratic system.
It is the first ruling of its kind.
The Bundestag lower house, Bundesrat upper house and government applied in 2019 to the court to strip the party of funding after a change in Germany’s Basic Law to prevent radical parties from getting state funds other parties are entitled to.
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Source: https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/germany-can-cut-funding-far-right-party-rules-court-2024-01-23/