“Do you still want to have a decision?” Judge Wolfgang Haferranke asks the lawyer Andreas Schoemaker after less than an hour of appeals proceedings at the Berlin Regional Court. He has already indicated that it would not turn out well for him. But Schoemaker wants – and so the decision is made five minutes later: The Brandenburg state parliament member Andreas Kablitz remains excluded from the AfD. Accordingly, he cannot become state chairman again if his former state association elects a new boss this year.
Because the injunction sought by Kalbitz against the cancellation of his AfD membership was rejected by the regional court on Friday in the second and last instance. His last hope is the main proceedings. His lawyer Schoemaker assures that the lawsuit has been filed, referring to an advance invoice from October 21 of last year.
But the complaint has still not been served on the other side, the AfD. At least that’s what the party’s lawyer, Joachim Steinhöfel, says. There is some evidence that Kalbitz is keeping the matter open and has therefore not yet paid the bill. But that can no longer be clarified on Friday. “It is better if someone with the political inclinations of Mr. Kalbitz is not a member,” says Steinhöfel. »Jokingly, I call myself the AfD’s denazification officer. Today it is two to zero. ”Because he has already won the case of the former AfD state chairman of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Dennis Augustin, who had to leave the party because he used to belong to the neo-fascist NPD.
In the case of Kalbitz, it is about the fact that in his application for membership in 2015 he concealed the fact that he once participated in the Republicans and the home-loyal German Youth (HDJ). This was expressly asked for in the form. The AfD’s federal executive board and federal arbitration court therefore canceled Andreas Kalbitz’s membership last year.
Kalbitz admits that he was a member of the Republicans in Bavaria in 1993. Since the protection of the Constitution had not yet classified them as right-wing extremist, but only in 1995, when he was already out, argues the politician. Kalbitz only claims to have looked around the neo-fascist HDJ for the sake of interest. The MP does not appear in person at the court on Elßholzstrasse in Berlin. However, his attorney Schoemaker provides an affidavit. As far as can be seen, Kalbitz asserts that he has never been a member of the HDJ. The insurance is not read out. AfD attorney Steinhöfel just skimmed them before Judge Haferranke took the document to the files. That doesn’t change anything about the decision that Oferranke makes with his fellow judges. The decision of the Federal Arbitration Court of the AfD on July 25, 2020 to declare Kalbitz’s party membership null and void because of “fraudulent deception” does not show any obvious errors, according to the justification for the court decision.
“We are naturally not satisfied with this decision,” commented attorney Schoemaker while in court. “Of course, Mr. Kalbitz will follow through with the proceedings until the end – up to the Federal Court of Justice.” What is meant is the main proceedings. But experience shows that something like this takes three or four years.
So far, the Brandenburg AfD has kept its former chairman Kalbitz free. On the party’s website, only a silhouette is shown on photos of the board members at the chairman. The deputies Birgit Bessin and Daniel Freiherr von Lützow take care of the business. A few days before the trial, Birgit Bessin said that if Kalbitz won and an injunction was issued, “then he will be our chairman again.” Kalbitz would then be “welcome”. But he is actually welcome either way. After all, they are working well with him in the parliamentary group.
However, there are some question marks behind these remarks by Bessin, who is counted among Kalbitz’s loyal followers. Kalbitz is by no means popular in his former party. Many only sought his proximity as long as he was in power and also sat on the federal executive board and was parliamentary group leader. Others always kept their distance because they could never stand Kalbitz because of his behavior, which was rude even for the East German AfD. His behavior was expressed by a punch with which he inflicted internal injuries to AfD MP Dennis Hohloch. Due to the regulations, Kalbitz can only be removed from the parliamentary group with a large majority of votes. Otherwise it might have already happened. The number of his loyal followers there should now be manageable.
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