Before the 5th anniversary of death
The von Lübcke family calls on politicians to stand firm
Walter Lübcke was shot in the head and killed on the terrace of his house. Photo
© Swen Pförtner/dpa
Five years after the murder of CDU politician Walter Lübcke, his family appeals to politically active people not to be intimidated by attacks and calls for them to be better protected.
The family of the murdered CDU politician Shortly before the fifth anniversary of the death of the former Kassel district president, Walter Lübcke appealed to politically active people not to allow themselves to be intimidated.
“Precisely because the Lübcke family has experienced how words become actions, they are horrified by the current attacks on politicians – whether through online threats or physical attacks,” she said through a spokesperson in response to a request from the German Press Agency. The family expressly wants to encourage all those affected and all those who are committed to our democracy not to be intimidated by the attacks. “Stay steadfast, do not deviate from your convictions and attitudes, you are not alone,” she stressed, calling for better protection for those involved in politics.
“We know that direct contact between politicians and the public is an essential part of a free democracy – Walter Lübcke constantly sought contact with people, not just during election campaigns,” said the family. Realistically, unfortunately, not all crimes could be prevented, but much more must be done to protect both full-time and voluntary politicians and elected representatives. “The family has learned painfully what it is like when protection is not provided.”
She also experienced that, in addition to the murder of her husband and father, attacks and denunciations were made on the Internet. “Attacks and threats of this kind must be reported directly by those affected. It is the duty of our constitutional state to take the necessary rigorous action against the perpetrators, to pursue the crimes quickly and consistently and to punish them legally accordingly.”
Lübcke was shot in the head at close range by right-wing extremist Stephan E. on his terrace in Wolfhagen-Istha in northern Hesse on the night of June 2, 2019. His motive: rejection of the then district president’s liberal stance on refugee policy. The perpetrator is serving a life sentence. The crime is considered the first politically motivated murder of a German politician by a neo-Nazi in the Federal Republic of Germany.