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German Anti-Immigrant Movement Leaders Resign Posts German Anti-Immigrant Movement Leaders Resign Posts
(about 5 hours later)
BERLIN — The protest group that shook up German politics and spawned large rallies around the country for and against immigration announced on Wednesday that several of its leaders had resigned. BERLIN — The anti-immigrant group that spawned large rallies and counterprotests around Germany announced a leadership exodus on Wednesday, just a week after its founder was forced to step down when photos of him dressed as Hitler circulated on social media.
The group, known as Pegida, the German acronym for Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamization of the West, sprung up in the fall with a few hundred followers, amid questions about its roots and its leadership. This month, as many as 25,000 people showed up in Dresden, the center of the movement, for its weekly marches, though tens of thousands of others have turned out across Germany to counter its anti-immigration message. The group, known as Pegida, the German acronym for Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamization of the West, sprang up in the fall with only a few hundred followers. This month, as many as 25,000 people showed up in Dresden for its weekly marches, while tens of thousands of others have turned out across Germany to counter its anti-immigration message.
A statement posted on Pegida’s website said that its spokeswoman, Kathrin Oertel, and at least one other member of the leadership had stepped down. The German media reported that as many as five of the leaders had resigned. But as the Pegida movement — and the backlash — swelled, and interest in its rallies picked up, the group’s leadership crumbled under increased scrutiny, and the nascent movement may be waning.
The web statement said that Ms. Oertel needed a “timeout” from the barrage of media that had accelerated as the weekly rallies picked up followers and national and international interest. The other leader needed to devote himself to his business, it added. A statement posted on Pegida’s website said that its spokeswoman, Kathrin Oertel, needed a “timeout” from the barrage of media that has accelerated since the rallies picked up followers and national and international interest. Thomas Tallacker, another member of Pegida’s leadership and a former member of the City Council in Meissen, near Dresden, needed to devote himself more fully to his struggling business, the statement added. German media reported that three more of the movement’s leaders had also resigned.
The statement said a new leadership would be chosen in coming days, though it did not explain how. Hajo Funke, a political scientist who studies right-wing extremism in Germany, said the resignations spelled “the beginning of the end” of Pegida. “You cannot keep a movement together when the leadership is at odds with each other and does not know what it wants,” he said.
City officials in Dresden said there would be no anti-immigration rally on Monday. No reason was given. Pegida’s leadership structure is murky, and though the statement did not explain how, it said that new leaders would be chosen in the coming days.
The German media linked the resignations to a controversy over Lutz Bachmann, the movement’s founder, who stepped aside last week after photos emerged showing him dressed as Adolf Hitler. The group, which railed against immigrants, among other complaints about Germany’s direction, had repeatedly denied that it had any ties to the Nazi movement. Lutz Bachmann, the movement’s founder, stepped down last week after a photo posted on Facebook showing him dressed as Hitler was strewn across the front pages of German newspapers and recirculated on social media.
Mr. Bachmann, who on Wednesday did not answer calls to his mobile telephone, told the Sueddeutsche Zeitung that Ms. Oertel had been threatened by a left-wing anti-Nazi movement in Dresden. The group, which attracts a motley mix of far right-wingers, xenophobic populists and ordinary Germans who feel neglected by the government, had repeatedly denied that it had any ties to the Nazi movement.
Mr. Bachmann, who did not answer calls to his mobile telephone on Wednesday, told the Süeddeutsche Zeitung newspaper that Ms. Oertel had been threatened by a left-wing, anti-Nazi movement in Dresden.
Besides Dresden, the only other city where Pegida has had a considerable presence was Leipzig, where some 7,000 anti-immigration marchers faced off last week against a larger crowd of opponents. The movement has been seen as an affront to Germany’s message of tolerance, and it has drawn the attention of the German establishment, including Chancellor Angela Merkel.Besides Dresden, the only other city where Pegida has had a considerable presence was Leipzig, where some 7,000 anti-immigration marchers faced off last week against a larger crowd of opponents. The movement has been seen as an affront to Germany’s message of tolerance, and it has drawn the attention of the German establishment, including Chancellor Angela Merkel.
The statement on the Pegida website announcing the two resignations said, “It is not a matter of personalities, but our cause — and that is good and right,” spelled out in capital letters. The movement will not hold a rally next Monday, a spokesman for the Dresden city government told the German news agency DPA.
In the statement on its website announcing the two resignations, Pegida said, “It is not a matter of personalities, but our cause — and that is good and right,” rendered in capital letters.