The AfD faction in the Berlin House of Representatives failed at the second attempt to send a representative to the committee of inquiry into the series of right-wing extremist attacks in Neukölln. In the vote on Thursday, there was again no majority for the AfD candidate Antonin Brousek and his deputy Karsten Woldeit.
Two weeks earlier, the two had failed after the FDP voted unanimously against the AfD proposals and the SPD, Greens, Left and CDU largely abstained. From the ranks of the Left and the Greens there was another no vote. This time there were 32 yes and 32 no votes for both candidates in a secret ballot with 68 and 67 abstentions respectively – and thus again no majority.
“Unfortunately, we had a corona-related failure,” said the parliamentary group leader of the AfD, Kristin Brinker, on Thursday evening of the German Press Agency. A group member tested positive on Thursday. “One voice was missing. We were only 12 and not 13.”
After its failure two weeks ago, the AfD parliamentary group filed a complaint with the state constitutional court because of the appointment of the committee without their participation. The court rejected the urgent application on Wednesday with reference to the renewed vote on Thursday, as a spokesman for the House of Representatives said on Thursday. After the second attempt failed, Brinker announced that the parliamentary group would file a lawsuit again.
In a statement from the AfD parliamentary group, Brinker criticized that the parliamentary rights of the parliamentary group would be violated again if the AfD candidates were excluded from the committee. “This puts the establishment of the committee of inquiry, which by law must include representatives of all parliamentary groups, in acute jeopardy.” It could be left open what reasons MPs from other parties might have for not letting the committee come into being. “In any case, the AfD faction wants to help clarify the background to the series of attacks in Neukölln.”
