Germany: Dissembler Hysteria

In the past few weeks, it was easy to get a bad impression about Germany: Hordes of rowdies, influenced by extreme right wing body of thought were everywhere and foreigners were not safe. Maps, showing unsafe German districts for strangers, (so called No-Go-Areas) were published in the internet and on TV by certain groups.

This hysteria started at Easter in Potsdam: A drunken man had a quarrel with two other drunkards in the night. The drunken man, Ermyas M., tried to call his wife via mobile phone. Instead of his wife he got her answering machine and became angry. He insulted his consort, or rather the answering machine, with “pig”. Two other drunkards who where next to Mr. M., felt accosted by the word “pig”. During the following quarrel one of the drunkards used the word “nigger” - Mr. M. is black. Then the two drunkards wanted to go. But Ermyas M. did not let them go. He kicked one of the drunkards and got one knock back. Hit under his chin Mr. M. felt down and his head impacted on pavement. As a result he lost his consciousness for several weeks and is still in hospital.

Media transmuted this fray into a xenophobic attack: Although nobody knew identity of the two drunkards, for most media it was clear, that both were hostile to foreigners. Media mentioned, one drunkard called Mr. M. “Nigger” (that was on the answering machine) and alleged Ermyas M. was hit by many knocks. Federal Attorney General Kay Nehm (the highest German public prosecutor and normally responsible for terrorism and other subversive crimes) took over this case and started investigation. After a short time, he presented two suspects. The two suspects were flown to a magistrate in Karlsruhe by helicopter and on TV was the picture of the two suspects, trussed and with blindfolds, when they left the helicopter and were brought to a courthouse. For media it was clear, that both suspects were guilty for attempted murder and of course, both were extreme right wing, because both had very short hair. There was a real campaign against the suspects, e.g. one suspect purported he stayed with his mother, during assumed time of crime. The newspaper with highest-circulation in Germany made this out of his assertion: “During examination: Perpetrator cries for his mother!”

Leveraged by the incident, in Germany a discussion started: How safe is Germany for foreigners? And a so called “Africa-Council” presented a map of Germany with districts, which were dangerous for black people. The claims of “Africa-Council” were endorsed by Karsten Uwe Heye, a high-profile former government spokesman and chairman of the society “Campaign for a liberal-minded Germany”.

A short time after Potsdam tragedy, in Berlin an Italian claimed to be attacked by skinheads. The Italian said that three skinheads asked him for his nationality and as he said Italian, he was attacked. Politician and media were disgusted again and the debate about racism and xenophobia became new material. Several days later it was clear, that the Italian lied. A station monitoring camera recorded him, falling from a platform on rails. The Italian was drunk and had no health insurance.

Ditto in Berlin, the third media effective “attack” this year against a foreigner started: A Turk with German citizenship and representative in Berlin city council for the PDS (former SED, and a very left party) Giyasettin Sayan alleged that he was attacked by unknowns. He claimed to be insulted and knocked down. Several contradictions appeared later. Mr Sayan was not able to be examined by police, but he was able to be interviewed by journalists. PDS man Sayan is not a candidate, who is high enough on the list to expect a safe seat for city council election this year. A bigger attention is not bad at all to achieve a better status in his party. Even in his party not everybody is convinced, that there was really a xenophobic attack.

Always in May German defence of the constitution (a German interior intelligence service) publishes its report for last year. In 2005 radically right wing crimes increased by 26.8 % up to 15 914 punishable acts. Among this acts there are 1034 acts of violence, which means an increase by 24.3 %. Radically left wing extremists committed 1240 acts of violence, which means an increase by 57.2 %.

After the report was published Daniel Cohn-Bendit (a well known left wing politician) demanded that every convicted radically right wing criminal should loose passive elective franchise after his release from prison for several years. Mr Cohn-Bendit did not mention any extra punishment of convicted radically left wing criminals. Although radically left wing extremists committed more crimes than radically right wing extremists, there was no debate about radically left wing extremists, most TV stations and most newspapers did not even mention that radically left wing extremists committed 1240 acts of violence. So there was just hysteria about radically right wing crimes and its increase. Two thirds of the 15 914 punishable acts were propaganda offences. In Germany swastikas, denial of Holocaust and glorification of National Socialism or National Socialist politician are against the law. So it is easier for radically right wing extremists to break the law than for radically left wing extremists. Every swastika, sprayed against a wall by a teenager, is a right wing propaganda offence and numbered in the report. The radically left wing side has nothing like that to fear, neither hammer and sickle nor glorification of Communism or Communist politicians are prohibited. Therefore radically left wing propaganda offences do not exist at all and as long as radically left wing extremists do not make a plea for violence, radically left wing propaganda is not reported by defence of the constitution.

Another fact, written in the report is that crimes against foreigners dropped in 2005. The bad impression about Germany with omnipresent radically right wing rackets is wrong. Those rackets do not exist in that quality and quantity as many people may believe after the last weeks. But why was this impression designed?

A representative survey made in February 2006 shows that 55 % of the interrogated Germans, do not think that Islam in Germany is enrichment but a menace (In September 1995 only 40 % believed that). And 38 % Germans are afraid by Islam (3% more than two year ago). 60 % are expecting a conflict between Islam and Western World.

Another survey made in 2004 for the public broadcasting shows that more than 52 % German think, that too many foreigners are living in Germany.

Several occurrences in a notorious school in Berlin with a majority of foreign pupils (more than 80 %) stood in public eye.

A study of the well known criminologist and sociologist Pfeiffer (former minister of justice in Lower Saxony under Gerhard Schroeder) proved Turks (in the age group teenagers and adolescent) are the group that is scarcest victim of a criminal act. But this group also provides a three time higher rate of intensive and persistent offenders than Germans in the same age group. Every third Turk between 14 and 18 committed acts of violence – robbery, blackmail and use of arms. German teenagers are overrepresented as victims and German teenagers are more pacifistic than Turkish teenagers (in 1997 a survey showed that 41 % of Turkish men between 15 and 21 believed that it is all right to use violence to achieve an aim). A police report from 1998 showed, that foreigners provided 27.1 % high crime acts suspects, although foreigners provided only 9 % of the population in Germany in 1998.

In context with radically right wing acts mentioned “No Go Areas” for foreigners do not exist. But “No Go Areas” for Germans in Germany really exist. A “No Go Areas” for Germans exist in every bigger city in Germany.

All this facts about foreigners became public knowledge. As a result multicultural supporter have to defend their ideas (normally it is the other way round, everyone who is against multicultural society is suspected to be a Nazi). More and more people began to reject a multicultural society. In public many people asked for the benefits to society in reference to foreigners and immigration was criticized. To defend themselves and their ideals multicultural supporters in the media transformed a normal fray into a xenophobic attack in Potsdam. They propagated media effective radically right wing acts of violence, based on the report of defence of the constitution and did not mention radically left wing acts of violence. And media did not mention a report of US terrorism expert Walter Laqueur, who wrote that foreign extremists in Germany are a bigger thread for society than radically right and left wing extremists together. Foreign extremists even outnumber right and left wing extremists. All this was kept secret and multicultural supporters demanded more public money for their foundations and initiatives. The Government wants to shorten money for the so called “fight against right”, but this is hardly possible if people believe that radically right wing extremists are greatest threat for society. Government was not really sad that extreme right wings were in the public eye – a bill which meant the highest tax increase since 1949 passed the German parliament while the debate about right wing extremists took place.

Nevertheless incidents like in Berlin or Potsdam do not have effects on society. The time of great demonstrations against xenophobia is over and as the unvarnished truth about Potsdam and Berlin became public, the intention of them who presented a distorted version about Potsdam and Berlin reversed into the opposite.

Until next media effective distorted quarrel between a German and Foreigner, supporters of multicultural society are in defensive now.

Sources

Die Welt: Getrübte Abschiedsstimmung

Die Welt:Grausame Tat aus Fremdenhaß: Schwarzer wird ins Koma geprügelt

Spiegel Online: Mordanschlag auf Schwarzen in Potsdam

N24: “No-Go-Areas” für Afrikaner zur Fußball-WM

Afrika-Rat: PREVENT RACIST ATTACK

20 Minuten: WM: Karte mit «Ausländer-Hass-Zonen»

Spiegel Online: Wo Heye recht hat, hat er recht

Spiegel Online: Haftbefehl gegen Italiener erlassen

Spiegel Online: Staatsschutz ermittelt nach Angriff auf kurdischstämmigen Politiker

taz: Sayan-Überfall

Junge Welt: Fall Sayan: Noch kein Hinweis

Spiegel Online: Politische Gewalt erreicht Höchststand

Spiegel Online: Cohn-Bendit zur Rassismus Debatte: Wir müssen den Spieß umdrehen

Stern: Islam - Jeder dritte Deutsche hat Angst

ZDF Politbarometer: Mehrheit meint: Ausländer tun
nicht genug für Integration

Der Tagesspiegel: Zu viel Gewalt: Erste Schule in Berlin gibt auf”>

IfS Studie: Zuwanderung nach Deutschland - Chancen, Mythen, Risiken (PDF)

“Mit aller Gewalt” - eine WDR 5-Serie

Stern: Tiefer Griff ins Portmonee

“Junge Freiheit“ 18/06, April 28, 2006: Angst vor einem zweiten Sebnitz - Der Publizist und Medienwissenschaftler Arne Hoffmann über die bizarre Medienreaktion im “Fall Potsdam“