AfD in the Bundestag: German-Indian Forum and “Democracy Congress”

In June, the AfD parliamentary group in the Bundestag invited foreign guests to meetings at the Bundestag on two separate occasions. The first German-Indian Forum, organized by the AfD’s Working Group on Economic Cooperation and Development for June 9, received little attention. Kartikeya Sharma (a member of the Upper House) and Arun Nehru (a member of the Lower House) had traveled from India and addressed the representatives of the far-right parliamentary group with friendly and noncommittal remarks about the importance of bilateral trade relations.

The event was chaired by Markus Frohnmaier, who is not only the parliamentary group’s foreign policy spokesperson but also the deputy chair of the German-Indian Parliamentary Group. Further details about the AfD’s German-Indian Forum can be found in our Events section.

The AfD parliamentary group drew more attention with its invitation to its first Democracy Congress in the Bundestag, which was titled “Freedom of Expression—Media—Human Rights.” Around 300 participants attended the event on June 26 and 27, which was advertised as bringing together “politicians, scholars, journalists, and media representatives from Germany and abroad.” In the end, however, the congress was an event conducted almost entirely in German, and guests were present only from Switzerland, Austria, and the Czech Republic: Vaclav Klaus and Tomio Okamura (Svoboda a přímá demokracie – SPD, Freedom and Direct Democracy, Czech Republic), Alexander Kissler and Claudio Zanetti (Swiss People’s Party – SVP), and Susanne Fürst (FPÖ). Holger Friedrich, publisher of the Berliner Zeitung, did not appear for his announced keynote address. More details about the speakers and panels can also be found in our Events section.

Many speeches focused on the alleged erosion of freedom of speech for the AfD and its counterparts; there was no room for dissent. In an article, Die Zeit described this as a “two-day monologue”: “The party whose leaders emphasize the importance of dissent for democracy at every opportunity created no space for precisely this dissent.”

There was controversy within the AfD over the participation of Tomio Okamura, the president of the Czech Chamber of Deputies. He had spoken out against holding the traditional Sudeten German Pentecost gathering in the Czech Republic for the first time this year. Largely at his instigation, the parliament had passed a resolution opposing the gathering. The Czech acting Foreign Minister, Petr Macinka (Motoristé sobě), and German AfD Member of the Bundestag Martina Kempf also took part in the disputes surrounding the gathering.