defense of Constitution
Völkische “Initiative Move Together” is observed
The Office for the Protection of the Constitution observes the “move together” initiative as a proven right-wing extremist effort. photo
©Oliver Berg/dpa
As “national settlers”, right-wing extremists are looking for a new home, preferably in Saxony and Thuringia. Far away from “multiculturalism” the ethnic idea should be lived here. The Office for the Protection of the Constitution reacted.
The völkisch settlement movement “Initiative Move Together”, which is active primarily in Saxony and Thuringia, is now being observed by the Office for the Protection of the Constitution as proven right-wing extremist efforts. This was announced by a spokeswoman for the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) on Thursday on request.
The group uses “repeatedly ethnic and xenophobic statements”, the “taz” quoted the protection of the constitution. “Their representatives openly and regularly express an exclusively ethnic understanding of the people, often referring to National Socialist terminology,” the authority explained when asked by the newspaper.
The Office for the Protection of the Constitution lists settlement efforts by right-wing extremists separately in its current annual report. The report states that the aim of these movements is mostly the “preservation of the Germans”. “Being German” is defined here primarily with recourse to the ethnic concept of the people in the sense of the folkish “blood and soil” ideology.
Germans from the West should move to the East
BfV President Thomas Haldenwang said when the report was presented on Tuesday that ethnic settlers were trying to take over smaller areas in order to create retreats there. “Examples of such an approach are the suspected Anastasia movement and the right-wing extremist network Initiative Together,” he continued. In its announcements, the “Getting Together” initiative tries to persuade Germans from the west of the Federal Republic to move to the east, citing, among other things, cheap living space and the lower proportion of people with a migration background there as arguments.
The “moving together initiative” is being observed “as a settlement effort with a particular völkisch-nationalistic character”, the State Office for the Protection of the Constitution of Saxony also made clear on Thursday. She is a cross-party network of right-wing extremists who want to mobilize “ethnic Germans” to move to “Central Germany” and stand by them in an advisory capacity. The group appeared primarily in Leisnig (Middle Saxony district).
According to the LfV, several right-wing extremists from different regions have settled in Saxony with their families over a period of several years. They came from Rhineland-Palatinate, North Rhine-Westphalia, Lower Saxony, among others, and also from Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. In doing so, they advertise in particular with favorable location factors such as inexpensive living space, low real estate prices or rural seclusion. An LfV spokeswoman said that the settlement projects could be seen as a further indication of the current networking efforts within the right-wing extremist scene.
Settlements in “Central Germany” are advertised
According to the Saxon LfV, since February 2020 the “Getting Together Initiative” has been promoting settlements in “Central Germany”, particularly on its Telegram channel and through various right-wing extremist publications. Some of the newcomers belonged to the neo-Nazi scene, some belonged to right-wing extremist parties. They also included former members of the neo-Nazi German Youth Loyal to Home, which was banned in 2009. “These connections have remained intact over the years, one remains true to the scene and its anti-constitutional goals,” it said.
“The extremist ideas are passed on to the next generations within so-called ‘settlement communities’. The aim is to realize a life plan based on racist and ethnic ideas, which is intended to set an example against the ‘foreign infiltration’ felt by the immigrants” , explained the LfV spokeswoman. This is illustrated by the statement made by one of the initiative’s protagonists. He considers Saxony to be an ideal area for the project, since “one is still accepted here as a real German” and “the people can grow again in peace”.