The key facts

  • The court ruled (6 votes to 2) that the video must remain offline until a final decision, but for no longer than six months.
  • The court did not assess the constitutionality of Reiche's statements and stressed her freedom to express her opinion as a politician or private individual.
  • The Left won the Berlin elections on 20 September with 25.7% and are in talks with the SPD and the Greens.

The court's ruling in Karlsruhe

Germany's Federal Constitutional Court on Thursday published a preliminary ruling ordering Economy Minister Katharina Reiche to remove a video from her ministry's official Instagram account in which she accused the Left Party of 'open support of antisemitism'. The court stated that distributing such statements from an official government account may violate the party's right to equal participation in political competition. The judges voted 6 to 2: the video must remain offline until a final decision on the Left's complaint, but for no longer than six months.

The court's reasoning

The court particularly noted that the ruling is relevant against the backdrop of ongoing government formation talks in Berlin following the Left's victory in the elections on 20 September. In the court's view, further distribution of the statements 'is capable of seriously discrediting the applicant in the eyes of the public' and could make it difficult for potential partners to conclude a coalition agreement, creating political realities that go far beyond the negative characterizations themselves. At the same time, the court did not assess whether Reiche's statements were unconstitutional and stressed that she retains the freedom to express her opinion as a politician or a private individual.

The essence of the conflict

The video, published on 24 September and taken from Reiche's speech at a business event the day before, was aimed against the possible participation of the Left in Berlin's government. Reiche, a conservative politician from Chancellor Merz's CDU, criticized the party's long-standing plans to expropriate large private housing companies as a response to rising rents, and also stated that the Left is a party 'which openly supports antisemitism, which makes Jews in this city afraid.' The Left went to court after the ministry refused to remove the video by 29 September, arguing that a federal ministry should not use state resources and official powers to campaign against a political party. Reiche, through her lawyers, argued that her statements were constitutional and did not violate the government's duty of political neutrality.

The Left's position

Left leaders have repeatedly criticized opponents for using accusations of antisemitism to suppress criticism of the Israeli government's policies and what they call the Netanyahu government's crimes in Gaza. The party's leading candidate in the Berlin elections, Elif Eralp, has repeatedly rejected accusations of antisemitism against herself and the party. She said the party leadership had distanced itself from a small number of isolated incidents at some campaign events, added that the party opposes all forms of racism, and noted that in her career she had participated in projects to combat antisemitism. In the elections on 20 September, the Left received 25.7% of the vote, more than doubling their result from three years earlier, and are now negotiating a possible coalition with the SPD and the Greens.