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Court: okay to sweep neo-Nazi from public job

Published: 7 Nov 12 16:52 CET | Print version
Online: http://www.thelocal.de/national/20121107-46035.html

A neo-Nazi chimney sweep heard on Wednesday that the state had the right to sack him because of his extreme political views, and association with a still-legal far-right political party.

Lutz Battke appealed after he was dismissed as district master chimney sweep - a role which includes making public appearances - on the basis of his work for the far-right NPD party and active participation at right-wing rallies.

But the Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig told the 54-year-old on Wednesday that the state administrator in Saxony-Anhalt had the right to dismiss him from his public post because of his political activity.

Battke regularly attends memorial services for the assassins who murdered Jewish industrialist Walther Rathenau in 1922, and serves on Burgenland district council and the small town of Laucha in central Germany for the NPD.

His appeal was accepted by the lower courts on the grounds that his political activities bore no relation to his work.

But the Federal Administrative Court rejected this argument, ruling it was doubtful Battke could be relied upon to observe the German legal system and support the constitution. This was important in his position as district master chimney sweep, which the judges stressed included public duties.

The court said Battke's actions made clear he endorsed the most serious and anti-Semitic crimes to the point where he felt the perpetrators worthy of veneration. The court found this compromised his position as part of the administration and his obligation to protect the rights of his customers.

He lost his position as trainer of the youth football team in Laucha in 2010 due to his political activities.

DAPD/The Local/jlb

What do you think? Leave your comment below.


Your comments about this article:

18:34 November 7, 2012 by royp
Comment removed by The Local for breach of our terms.
18:43 November 7, 2012 by Bigfoot76
It is difficult to understand what reasoning went into this. Essentially the court is saying it is okay for a bunch of legal political parties to fire someone who is of a different legal political party. If they finally do away with the NPD then this would be sound but under current circumstance it seems very suspect. Let's see if the Greens try to kick out Merkel using the same methodology as they used on this misguided sap.
19:33 November 7, 2012 by derb76
Freedom of speech is a joke in Germany, and this country has no sense of humor.
19:43 November 7, 2012 by auslanderus
But it's ok for him to be a neo-Nazi? No one complains about that....odd.
20:15 November 7, 2012 by Bigfoot76
Legally it is still okay and that is probably a bigger issue in regards to this story. Morally it is obviously horrific.
21:22 November 7, 2012 by TheCrownPrince
Hahaha! Just look at him! Such a guy never would have been taken even by the SA, and they took anybody. As for the verdict - under German law it is absolutely correct: as a chimney sweep, you carry out public functions and therefore you have to comply with the constitution. What a pity for our Reichs-chimney-führer.
23:56 November 7, 2012 by wolfgang60
For some who think that a master sweeper is only sweeping the chimney. Here are some Infos of their works.: http://www.schornsteinfeger-gerath.de/leistungen.html
00:32 November 8, 2012 by marimay
Mullets are a clear sign of being of the superior race.
09:40 November 8, 2012 by lordkorner
Politics aside ,anyone with hair and moustache like that in my chimney would have a fire lit under him.
10:12 November 8, 2012 by Berlin fuer alles
A real beautiful specimen of the master race. How did they ever think they were the perfect race?
11:00 November 8, 2012 by zameenzad
A sane voice from German Court. thank you

@Bigfoot76

Its not about freedom of speech or difference of political party. Different of speech did not kill 6 million Jews, Romas and other people. Nazis did.

do you want that to happen again?

PS: The Pure Aryans are Afghans, Pakistani and Iranian, not Germans.
11:54 November 8, 2012 by michael4096
It's amazing to see the 'Germany' comments here. People are fired from public office because of extreme anti-social views in just about every country in the world. Think, attitudes towards homosexuals in the UK, rape in the US and many others - and that was just last week. However, because this is a neo-nazi in Germany there is something sinister or even "horrific" about it.

Come on, guys. Get a grip!
12:11 November 8, 2012 by raandy
A political point of view is not a crime in most Democratic nations, Fire this individual and put him on the State dole,or perhaps his views will negate that also.Either way it does not solve the problem.
12:38 November 8, 2012 by Berlin fuer alles
Comment removed by The Local for breach of our terms.
13:12 November 8, 2012 by rugbycoach
Yet in UK it is allwoed to keep your public job whilst having right wing views, under Human rights legislation: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2229211/Bus-driver-sacked-member-BNP-wins-legal-battle-claiming-dismissal-breach-human-rights.html
14:32 November 8, 2012 by Bigfoot76
@zameenzad I think you are missing my point. As I said, morally it is horrific that this guy is part of the NPD. It is horrific that the NPD exists. The fact is though, to this point the NPD is a legal political organization. Legally speaking he should not be fired any more than someone should be fired for being part of the CDU or SPD. What should happen is that the NPD should be banned. Then if this guy were still up to his same tricks, he should be fired. Also as i said, the bigger issue is not that he is part of the NPD, the bigger issue is that the NPD is still legal and that needs to change.
15:09 November 8, 2012 by raandy
Berlin fuer alles, let me know if it is going to happen and I will buy ya a beer :-)
00:36 November 9, 2012 by neunElf
Freedom can be rather messy.

What is next thought police?

Of course German's have never been big proponents of freedom.
11:17 November 9, 2012 by itchyvet
O.M.G. is this for real? In England it's been found to sack someone for their political beliefs is ILLEGAL, yet in Germany apparently it's O.K. ?

Boy, am I glad, my parents turned their backs on this nation 60 years ago and migrated to Australia, where my political views are NOT ILLEGAL.

Every day, I learn more and more about my roots in Germany, and realise my parents were so right, in turning their backs on their homeland.
16:29 November 9, 2012 by michael valerio
Looks like burning witches is next.
16:36 November 9, 2012 by whatsup
Neo-nazis are a big problem in Germany - and should be banned completely, given the history. There are just too many stories concerning them and the problems they cause.
17:35 November 9, 2012 by Exolon
"A political point of view is not a crime in most Democratic nations" ...

"What is next thought police?" ...

"In England it's been found to sack someone for their political beliefs is ILLEGAL, yet in Germany apparently it's O.K. ?" ...

A number of people seem to have made the same fundamental confusion. Let's look at an important part of the article again:

"The court said Battke's actions made clear he endorsed the most serious and anti-Semitic crimes to the point where he felt the perpetrators worthy of veneration."

The issue is not with his membership of idiotic right-wing racist groups per se, but rather with his activities which endorse or celebrate violence and murder motivated by racism and other hateful prejudices:

"Battke regularly attends memorial services for the assassins who murdered Jewish industrialist Walther Rathenau in 1922".

On that basis, I would completely agree with the decision of the court, which is guided by democratically-formed laws and therefore represents the will of the greater public and not just some neo-Nazi psychopaths (or politically-correct apologists).
22:13 November 9, 2012 by raandy
Exolon "What is next thought police?" ... what kind of gibberish is this?? I hate to state the obvious but your English S^cks.
23:15 November 9, 2012 by Darthkuriboh
Germany, Sweden, the UK... all of Europe has lost it's identity. Europeans need to remember that we're white. We've always been white, we'll always be white. We build civilizations, we create strong nations. You Europeans need to remember WHO you are.
12:58 November 13, 2012 by StoutViking
This schmuck might have been a Nazi, but so long he did not act on his beliefs, I don't even think the legal ground stands here.

This is, however, a turning point to a much sinister future. Next they'll label people as Nazis to rid them out of a public possition, to fill those possition with "correct minded people". Kinda reminds you on old times, eh?
16:37 November 18, 2012 by Johannantoinette
"A real beautiful specimen of the master race. How did they ever think they were the perfect race?"

...well, you DID invent the cars, printing press for the masses, beer purity laws and many other fantastic things. I say this as non-german. Obviously I would not take him seriously but NPD is a FINE party.

Bigfoot76: Why...?
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