BERLIN – A German court on Friday suspended the right of the country’s domestic intelligence agency to conduct surveillance over the main opposition party in Parliament, Germany’s far-right alternative.
The decision by the Cologne Administrative Court came two days after news leaked to the media that the intelligence service had decided to investigate the party, known by its German initials, AfD, on suspicion of being a threat to democracy.
The court said the leak violated a confidentiality agreement and jeopardized the party’s guarantee of equal opportunities. It revoked the intelligence agency’s right to take further action against the party, pending the outcome of an ongoing legal dispute over the measure.
Last month, the court ruled that the intelligence office, the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, known by its German initials BfV, was authorized to begin investigating AfD for extremism. But the party has filed a lawsuit, the outcome of which will now determine whether the agency can proceed with surveillance to monitor the movements of party members by tapping phones and other communications.
The court said in a statement that it was forbidding “the Federal Constitution Protection Department to classify or treat the party as a ‘suspicious case’ and any further announcements of such classification or treatment as a ‘suspicious case’ until a decision is reached. is taken in the emergency process powered by AfD. ”
The party welcomed the decision, which comes at a time when Germany is heading for the general elections in September.
“This decision is not only a major victory for us, but also for the rule of law, because the Administrative Court has shown that the illegal action of the Constitution Protection Office against the largest opposition party can be stopped by legal means,” party leader Jörg Meuthen said.
Increasingly concerned about the party’s positions, the intelligence agency spent two years examining the speeches and postings on AfD officials’ social networks for evidence of extremism. An assessment concluded that the party’s position violated the principles of liberal democracy, including Article 1 of the German Constitution, which states that human dignity is unassailable, officials said.
A year ago, the intelligence agency classified the most radical wing of the AfD associated with Björn Höcke, the party’s most notorious far-right arsonist, and his youth organization as extremists and said it would put some of its most influential leaders under surveillance.
The AfD holds seats in all 16 state chambers in Germany, as well as being the largest opposition party in the federal government. In recent months, support for the party has dropped to less than 10 percent, compared to the 12.6 percent representation it obtained in the 2017 elections.