German migrant groups urge Merz to protect minorities ahead of possible AfD government in Saxony-Anhalt

Migrant organizations report growing rejection. What they are demanding from the federal government in light of a looming AfD government in Saxony-Anhalt.

Migrant associations are calling on the federal and state governments to take precautions to protect minorities in the event of an AfD-led government in Saxony-Anhalt. "In Saxony-Anhalt, a party whose state association has been classified by the domestic intelligence service as confirmed right-wing extremist could, for the first time, participate in government in the coming weeks," reads an open letter addressed to Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) and the heads of the state governments. "But a concept for protecting the people who would be threatened by such a government does not exist to this day."

The letter, deliberately sent ahead of the Minister Presidents' Conference on Thursday, was issued by the Turkish Community in Germany, the Federal Conference of Migrant Organizations (BKMO), the umbrella association of migrant organizations in East Germany, and the State Network of Migrant Organizations in Saxony-Anhalt (Lamsa).

"The endangerment of democracy is on everyone's lips. The endangerment of people who do not fit into the völkisch worldview, on the other hand, is felt above all by those affected themselves — in their everyday lives," the associations warn, pointing to Jews, people perceived as Muslims, Sinti and Roma, queer people, and people with migration histories. "We are afraid," said BKMO chairwoman Karen Taylor. "The protection of our fundamental rights must not depend on our zip code."

The letter states: "Since the AfD's electoral successes, these people and their organizations have been experiencing rejection and hatred at an intensity that has not existed for a long time." Hate mail and threatening letters are arriving at the associations' offices, and staff are being insulted on the phone and on the street. The Lamsa network alone has recorded 85 counseling cases involving racist threats in the current year — more than in the entire previous year. Questions being raised include: "Will security authorities, whose actions the AfD bears political responsibility for, come to protect us?"

Associations Demand Protection Fund

Specifically, the authors of the letter are calling for a federal-state commission for the protection of minorities to assess what dangers an AfD government could pose to people in Saxony-Anhalt and to develop countermeasures. "It makes clear in advance how the rule of law will react if a state government attempts to test the boundaries of the constitution."

In addition, residency requirements — for asylum seekers, for example — should be lifted so that they can move away if they fear racist violence at their place of residence. The federal government must make clear: "A concrete racist, antisemitic, antiziganist, anti-Muslim, or right-wing extremist-motivated threat constitutes a hardship case and also enables a move to another federal state."

Furthermore, the federal government should establish a protection fund to support threatened nonprofit institutions, associations, counseling centers, municipalities, and initiatives that face racist threats — for example, in developing emergency plans or making structural modifications.

As a blueprint, the associations cite the 22 million euros the federal government made available after the right-wing terrorist attack in Halle in 2019 to secure Jewish institutions. Taylor criticized cuts to the federal "Democracy Live!" program, which she said would inevitably lead to fewer counseling options.

"The Basic Law applies in Saxony-Anhalt as it does everywhere in Germany. For this promise to hold, precautions are needed before it is put to the test. Set boundaries and say today how the federal and state governments will enforce them," the senders demand, requesting a written response within 14 days.