The attack victims' advisory centres noted a crucial increase in racist and anti-Semitic force last year. The association of counseling centres for people affected by right-wing, racist and anti-Semitic force (VBRG) reported in 2023 2589 specified attacks – 1 5th more than in the erstwhile year. However, statistic only include 11 of the 16 national states. The most racially-based force was recorded in Berlin, the least in Baden-Württemberg. According to advisory centres, a full of 3384 people were affected by political attacks. In more than half the cases, racism was the dominant motive. In addition, it is only the tip of the iceberg, due to the fact that not all crimes are reported to police and victim support centres.
Right-wing politicians
Ezra, supporting the victims, claims that there is simply a direct link between the increase in force and the support for the far-right AfD party, which presently ranks second in the support polls.
Mayar, a 20-year-old caregiver who escaped from Syria during the war and has lived in Germany for almost 9 years, tells of the attack she survived. He says the unsub insulted her and then hit her. Then he strangled her and pushed her to the train. He thinks he was going to do her a serious harm. Mayar's inactive afraid to leave the home tonight. In her opinion, the area is “very well known to right-wing extremists”. She noted that akin attacks have late been much more frequent. Racism is besides common on the Internet. The reason for this phenomenon is, according to her, an increase in support of AfD, a organization considered by the German court to be extremist. The caregiver is afraid that 1 day she will be deported only due to the fact that she comes from another country and no 1 will consider that she grew up in Germany.
Franz Zobel, Ezra Group spokesperson, besides argues that there is simply a direct link between the increase in the number of attacks and the support for AfD. He recalls that erstwhile the AfD politician was first elected as a mayor in the Sonneberg district, there was a immense increase in violence. Zobel points to a survey by prof. Dancygier of Princeton University, which suggests that AfD would vote from 38.7 percent to 42.5 percent of those who support hatred crimes. Seel besides notes that the increase in the number of attacks is not limited to Thuringia or even to Germany itself. It recalls that AfD and another European far-right parties keep contact with each another and so pose the top threat to the European Union, as well as to the thought of Europe and to citizens. In his opinion, many AfD supporters feel "just entitled to attacks", especially as there are cases of AfD politicians who personally attacked people.
Mild penalties
According to Correctiv's investigation agency data, 48 AfD representatives were active in the force at district, state and national level. 28 of them have been convicted and 14 are inactive active in politics. At least 5 others are under investigation. Zobel emphasizes that the perpetrators feel unpunished. The problem with the justice strategy is, first of all, Thuringia, where many very mild sentences are being handed down in akin cases. Furthermore, the motives of the perpetrators are seldom recognized there, so there is no confirmation that this is simply a racist crime. According to the ‘TAZ’ journal, judges from Gera region in Thuringia have close links with AfD policies at both local and national level.
In the case of Mayar, concerning a well-known extremist, active in the neo-Nazi community and listed for many misdemeanors, the trial lasted respective years and ended with a conviction in... suspension.
