NEWS FROM BERLIN

Neukölln and the Nakba

The CDU wants to have the publication ‘Mythos Israel 1948’ in Berlin schools. Die Linke in Neukölln opposes this. The brochure was published a few weeks before 7 October and has since been the subject of a fierce debate. ‘It is important for us to point out that it [the Nakba] was not a systematic expulsion,’ declared a spokesperson for the Masiyot association, which published the brochure. The authors mention that ‘the brochure was never intended to be distributed to schools,’ but only as background material for informed readers. Source: taz

Tuntenhaus is saved

For three months, the residents of the Tuntenhaus in Prenzlauer Berg had to fear for their home, but since Thursday it has been clear: the district of Pankow has a preemptive right to buy the property and the future of the queer house project is secure. Tuntenhaus has occupied the building in Kastanienallee since 1990. The Bavarian investor who had bought the house had until last Wednesday night to sign a settlement agreement, but failed to do so. The house will be sold to the Edith Maryon Foundation. Source: taz

Musk is allowed to build

The alliance ‘Tesla den Hahn abdrehen’ (Turn off the tap on Tesla) describes the vote in the Grünheide municipal council as a ‘bitter blow for water protection and democracy:’ 11 of the 19 Grünheide representatives voted in favour of a development plan last Thursday. Despite the fact that more than 60% of Grünheide residents had spoken out against it in a public survey in February, the US car manufacturer Tesla was given the green light to expand its plant. After the result of the vote became known, its opponents announced further resistance. Source: jW

NEWS FROM GERMANY

A decrease in Germany’s voting age from 18 to 16 could bring more than a million additional people to the polls for the European elections. There are even posters designed to encourage young people to vote in June’s European elections. One has the slogan “First kiss, first time, first vote” and was created by media design students Maja Steinbach, Maria Viktoria Junker and Fabian Navarro. Within Germany, 16-year-olds are eligible to vote in state elections in six states, but this is the first year that people as young as 16 can vote in the elections for the European Parliament. Source: dw

Bystron’s offices raided over bribery probe

German police have raided the offices of a leading member of the AfD over money-laundering and bribery allegations. MP Petr Bystron is accused of receiving money from Russia in return for influence – something he denies. The raids were carried out in a number of locations, including Munich, Mallorca, and the MP’s parliamentary office in Berlin. The Bundestag has agreed to lift parliamentary immunity and to allow for criminal proceedings against him. Bystron is the party’s number two candidate for next month’s European Parliament elections. Another of the AfD’s lead candidates, Maximilian Krah, is currently being investigated for alleged payments from Russia and China, but denies any wrongdoing. Source: bbc

NEWS FROM BERLIN

VBB boss Ute Bonde is Berlin’s new transport senator

Berlin’s Mayor Kai Wegner (CDU) has announced that Ute Bonde, a local transport expert, will succeed Manja Schreiner as Berlin’s transport senator. Bonde is managing director of the Berlin-Brandenburg Transport Association Berlin-Brandenburg. She is a CDU member from Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf and will be sworn in as the new Senator for Mobility, Transport, Climate Protection and the Environment in the parliamentary session on May 23^rd. Transport policy is a high priority in the city. There have been debates, for example, about the introduction of a 29-euro monthly ticket for local transport or the partial conversion of the central Friedrichstraße into a pedestrian zone. Source: rbb24

“We want the fence as quickly as possible”

After months of delays and uncertainty, Mayor Kai Wegner isn’t backing down on his plans for a fence around Görlitzer Park. In a recent interview with the German Press Agency, Wegner mentioned “legal delay tactics” deployed by the Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg district against the plans. “The tender process for the fence is still ongoing,” he said. “That’s why we can’t give a date for the fence yet,” added Wegner. “We want the fence as quickly as possible.” However, one thing is certain: it’s definitely not happening on schedule. Source: the berliner

NEWS FROM GERMANY

All four suspects in attack on SPD politicians identified

Three days after the attack on the Saxon top candidate for the European elections, Matthias Ecke (SPD), the Saxony State Criminal Police Office (LKA) has identified all four suspected attackers. They are all young Germans aged between 17 and 18 years old. However, the suspects are at large as there are no grounds for their arrest. According to the LKA, two of the suspects are already known to the police, the AFP news agency reported. The 41-year-old politician was attacked on Friday evening as he was putting up election posters for his party. He was seriously injured and had to undergo surgery. Source: tagesschau

Bundeswehr’s meetings found online

The German military confirmed earlier reports of a vulnerability affecting the Webex software that it uses for online meetings. The organization admitted last Saturday that a flaw in the video-conferencing tool left more than 6,000 of its meetings publicly accessible online. Zeit Online reported accessing German Bundeswehr meetings by using simple search terms on the military’s Webex system, and mentioned that the military only became aware of the security errors after they approached them for comment. The military said the bug was fixed within 24 hours of being reported. Source: dw

AfD trial in Münster: Will the judgement come soon?

The AfD keeps trying to delay the trial against the Office for the Protection of the Constitution. But the court wants to come to an end. It is considered practically certain that the proceedings in Münster will also determine the threat of the party being categorised as a confirmed right-wing extremist organisation. The party had already failed with two bias motions on the first day of the trial in March. After that, it had painstakingly and sluggishly submitted motions for evidence regarding the questioning of employees of the domestic intelligence service. Source: taz

Green Party and ver.di push for 15-euro minimum wage

The trade union ver.di and the Green Party, who makes up one-third of Germany’s governing coalition, are pushing for a 15-euro per hour minimum wage to be adopted by 2026. They note the German minimum wage should be increased in order to meet the guidelines of an EU Commission directive. As it stands, the German government commission responsible for deciding annual minimum wage increases has only revealed plans to increase the wage from 12,41 to 12,81 euros per hour from January 2025. The wage increase for 2026 will be decided by the German government elected in late 2025. Source: iamexpat

Study in Germany shows correlation between racism and poverty

The German Center for Integration and Migration Research (DeZIM) in Berlin published a study entitled “Limits of Equality. Racism and the risk of poverty.” The study shows a correlation between racism and the risk of poverty. The researchers searched comprehensively for discrimination: in the education system, the labor market, the housing market, and the health sector. Other studies before the current one showed that individuals with a migration background often face discrimination when looking for a job. This increases the risk of having to live below the poverty line. Source: dw

NEWS FROM BERLIN

Berlin rents increase by an average of 18.3%

A survey by the bank Berlin Hyp and brokerage company CBRE found rents in Berlin increased by 18.3% in 2023 compared to 2022. For new rental contracts landlords in Berlin were demanding an average of 13.60 euros cold rent (excluding the cost of utilities) per square metre. Neukölln and Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg were the two neighbourhoods with the highest rent increases: over 23%. The report predicts that demand for housing in Berlin will only continue increasing in the coming years as more people move to the city. Source: iamexpat

Tesla plans to cut 400 jobs in Grünheide

The US car manufacturer Tesla wants to cut jobs worldwide. The provisional extent of the cuts at its only European plant, in Grünheide, Brandenburg, is now known. The factory is planning to cut 400 jobs, as announced by the company to rbb last Tuesday. Talks are currently underway with the works council. Tesla says it wants to avoid layoffs and has therefore launched a volunteer programme for employees who wish to leave the company. CEO Elon Musk announced two weeks ago that he wanted to cut ten per cent of the global workforce due to difficulties in selling e-cars. Source: rbb24

NEWS FROM GERMANY

Compact and Free Saxony in the wake of the AfD

Almost 300 people came to the Sonneberg train station square in Thuringia on Saturday evening, where the right-wing extremist Compact magazine had promised a “folk festival” – with “Compact and AfD at your fingertips”. Petr Bystron – the AfD’s European candidate who is currently facing allegations of corruption – and Doris von Sayn-Wittgenstein had been announced as speakers. But the connections with the magazine appear closer than the party would have wanted them to look, as the Bundestag administration is investigating a possible donation. Meanwhile, the far-right Free Saxony party seeks to pull the AfD further to the right, and sociologist Johannes Kiess believes that joint majorities of the Free Saxons and the AfD are possible in individual municipalities. Source: tagesschau

More right-wing extremist cases reported at schools

Student representatives of the eastern German federal states are complaining about increasing right-wing extremism in schools. They claim that inhibitions are being eroded and that schools are often not sufficiently prepared for right-wing extremist incidents. The state student councils from Berlin, Brandenburg, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia therefore called for decisive countermeasures in a joint declaration at the beginning of April. Among other things, they want the subjects of politics and social studies to be strengthened in order to impart more knowledge about the threats that right-wing extremism poses to democracy. Source: rbb24

What are the benefits of a motorway speed limit in Germany?

“Free citizens demand free travel” – with this slogan, the German Automobile Club (ADAC) protested in the 70s against the West German speed limit of 100 kilometres per hour. Although it was only in force for a few months due to the oil crisis, the outrage was huge. Various attempts to introduce a general speed limit have since failed. Currently, more than half of Germans are in favour of a speed limit. Among the benefits there is the fact the slower a car drives, the less fuel it consumes. The 2021 Climate Act, however, makes no mention of a speed limit. Source: dw

Cannabis ban planned at German railway stations

Adults in Germany have been allowed to smoke cannabis since April 1, but bans remain in zones around playgrounds and schools, for example. Deutsche Bahn wants to ban the consumption of cannabis at railway stations as well. The only exception is consumption for medical reasons, which is already permitted and will remain so. Information posters will be displayed at all railway stations nationwide starting as early as next week, and Deutsche Bahn intends to prosecute offences from June. Prior to this, railway employees will ask travellers to refrain from consuming cannabis with “friendly requests and instructions.” Source: dw

Höcke: far-right politician on trial

Björn Höcke, who leads the AfD in Thuringia, is being tried for saying words associated with the SA stormtroopers, who played a key role in the Nazis’ rise to power, at a 2021 rally. At a campaign event in the state of Saxony-Anhalt in May 2021, Höcke ended a speech with the slogan “Everything for our homeland, everything for Saxony-Anhalt, everything for Germany!” Prosecutors say he was aware that the phrase was banned for being associated with the Nazi Sturmabteilung. At another rally, in 2023, Höcke said: “Everything for…”, to which the audience replied: “Germany!” Source: bbc