Dear members, friends and supporters of our foundation,

As a political foundation, we have also set ourselves the task of promoting democracy and providing political education. Some people think that this is unnecessary in Germany, that it is like carrying coals to Newcastle. Not at all! It is becoming increasingly clear that we now live in a deficient democracy. What is disturbing is that the federal government is not counteracting this, but rather that the initial spark for the destruction of democracy is coming from there. It is clear to any politically aware observer that the democratic substance of our country is fundamentally under threat. There is a discernible objective that is being ruthlessly pursued at the expense not only of our economic and cultural foundations and the harmonious coexistence of our people, but even at the expense of the destruction of our democracy.

As committed democrats, we are not alone in observing the de-democratisation of our country with considerable concern. Many now recognise that our own federal government has openly declared war on freedom of expression. In doing so, it is violating our fundamental civil rights and one of the cornerstones of our constitution. For the federal government, our freedom of expression ends the moment its policies or politicians are criticised. This is now considered an anti-constitutional „delegitimisation of the state“. In quite a few cases, this leads to house searches and the confiscation of laptops and mobile phones when a member of the government feels affected. At the same time, portals for denouncing citizens are explicitly funded with our tax money.

However, freedom of expression is one of the fundamental human rights.

In 2011, our Federal Constitutional Court ruled unequivocally, and not without reason, that freedom of expression protects all opinions, regardless of political correctness, „without regard to whether they prove to be true or false, whether they are justified or groundless, emotional or rational, or whether they are considered valuable or worthless, dangerous or harmless“. This federal government is arrogantly disregarding this ruling. Dictatorships can be recognised by the fact that criticism of the state is suppressed. There has never before been a comparable violation of the Basic Law and our fundamental human rights by the state itself in the history of the Federal Republic of Germany. Journalist Julian Reichelt summed it up very aptly when he wrote:„The federal government has declared war on freedom of expression.“

Another indicator of the threat to our democracy is the treatment of parts of the opposition. When an opposition party is denied basic rights and opportunities for parliamentary participation, this is more than a minor issue. It is obvious that effective political opposition, both in parliament and in the pre-political arena, is to be suppressed at any cost, absolutely any cost. Even if it means violating the constitution. If Hungary treated its opposition in this way, there would be a particularly loud outcry here in Germany. One thing has become clear: our democracy has been severely damaged for years, in full view of everyone. Everyone can see it, everyone can hear it. No one should say later that they knew nothing about it.

Some people may feel that this topic is not appropriate for a Christmas greeting. However, I believe that our foundation, which is committed to the fundamental values of our democracy, has a duty to draw attention to this issue, especially at this time. The future of our democracy and the civil liberties of our citizens are at stake.

I wish you all and your loved ones a peaceful and reflective Christmas – far removed from political challenges and concerns.

Kind regards

Yours
Erika Steinbach