German court orders Minister Reiche to delete video — Anadolu Agency

Germany’s Federal Constitutional Court has ordered Economy Minister Katherina Reiche to remove from her ministry’s official Instagram account a video in which she stated that the Left Party openly supports antisemitism. As Anadolu Agency reports, the court issued an interim ruling following a complaint by the party.

Court decision

The judges noted that disseminating such statements through an official government account could violate the Left Party’s right to equal participation in political competition. Six judges voted for the decision, while two dissented.

The video must remain unavailable until the complaint is finally considered, but for no longer than six months. At the same time, the court did not determine whether Reiche’s statements were unconstitutional and stressed that she may express her own position as a politician or private individual.

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Left Party’s complaint

The Left Party appealed to the court in Karlsruhe after the ministry refused to delete the post by September 29. The party insisted that a federal ministry must not use state resources and official authority to campaign against a political force.

Reiche, who represents Chancellor Merz’s Christian Democratic Union, said through lawyers that her statements did not violate the government’s duty to maintain political neutrality. The video was published on September 24; it contained an excerpt from her speech at a business event the previous day. The minister also criticized the Left Party’s plans to expropriate large private housing companies in response to rising rents.

The court separately noted the relevance of the case amid negotiations to form Berlin’s government after the Left Party’s victory in the September 20 election. The party received 25.7% of the vote and is negotiating a possible coalition with the Social Democratic Party and the Greens.