A nationwide entry ban has been issued against the right-wing extremist thinker Sellner – at the instigation of the city of Potsdam. The Austrian met with other right-wing extremists in a villa there in November.
The city of Potsdam has imposed a nationwide entry ban against the Austrian right-wing extremist Martin Sellner. A city spokeswoman told several news agencies that a notice had been sent “to determine the loss of the right of freedom of movement in the Federal Republic of Germany to an EU citizen.”
The spokeswoman did not want to comment on the name of the person concerned. However, he was heard before the decision was made, she said. Sellner himself spoke about the process on the online network X and presented a corresponding letter from the city of Potsdam. The “Süddeutsche Zeitung” first reported on the entry ban against him.
If necessary, Sellner is threatened with deportation
The city spokeswoman emphasized that in the Sellner case, the entry ban applies “in principle immediately”. If the person concerned is currently in Germany, he or she would have to leave within one month. However, appeals could be lodged both against the decision on the loss of the right to freedom of movement and against its immediate enforcement.
From now on, the federal police can refuse Sellner entry at the border. “After entering Germany, a person against whom there is an entry and residence ban can be deported,” explained the city spokeswoman in Potsdam. “In addition, entering the country contrary to a ban is a punishable offense and can have criminal consequences.”
Potsdam’s mayor Mike Schubert (SPD) said it had to be made clear “that the state is not powerless and is using its legitimate means.”
Plans for mass deportation
Sellner is a leading figure in the right-wing extremist “Identitarian Movement” in German-speaking countries. According to research by the “Correctiv” network, he was a speaker at the Potsdam secret meeting of AfD members and right-wing extremists in November 2023, at which the mass expulsion of people with a migrant background from Germany was said to have been discussed. The report resulted in numerous large demonstrations against right-wing extremism.
Most recently, the police in Switzerland temporarily arrested Sellner at a planned meeting of right-wing extremists. According to police reports, Sellner was supposed to give a speech at the event on Saturday in the village of Tegerfelden near the border with Germany. “To ensure public safety and prevent confrontations with people on the other side,” he was arrested and expelled from the canton.
Amelie Ernst, RBB, tagesschau, March 19, 2024 5:42 p.m