Hatred and agitation are rumbling in Munich! There were 2,317 preliminary investigations in Bavaria last year alone, and 1,152 in the state capital. Mayor Dieter (63, SPD) is also affected: he has been severely insulted several times.
Munich – hate and hate rumble in the state capital! There were 2,317 preliminary investigations in Bavaria last year alone, with 1,152 almost half in Munich. An increase of more than 40 percent overall, as Minister of Justice Georg Eisenreich explains. He warns that hate crime has “developed into a real threat to democracy.” The fight against hate speech must be “resolutely waged.” In 2,096 cases, investigations are still ongoing.
Bitter: Politicians in particular are increasingly being targeted. Like Mayor Dieter Reiter (63, SPD): At the end of June 2021, he received a total of four emails from a citizen who badly insulted Reiter. “With the emails, the perpetrator wanted to show his disregard for the victim Dieter Reiter,” says Bavaria’s hate speech officer Klaus-Dieter Hartleb. “Especially with the expressions ‘full post’ or ‘pathetic politicians’ he wanted to violate the personal rights of the injured person.”
The result: Hartleb obtained a search warrant against the sender of the emails. At the beginning of December, the senior public prosecutor arrived with the police. “The accused, who had no criminal record, was reasonable and confessed.” The propagandist’s laptop was confiscated – he then received a penalty order for a total of 3,600 euros at the beginning of January. The case is now legally closed.
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Munich: Mayor Dieter Reiter was massively insulted – perpetrators have to pay 3,600 euros
“Hate and hate speech online have reached an alarming level”*, says Minister of Justice Eisenreich. The corona pandemic has intensified the crimes: his investigators have conducted a total of 3,965 cases of hate crime on the Internet since the beginning of 2020. The perpetrators are mostly identifiable – there were 1881 last year. Sometimes they even post under real names. And have to reckon with penalties of up to four net monthly salaries.
Local politicians have recently been able to use an online reporting procedure and send complaints or inquiries directly to the public prosecutor’s office – there were already 438 by the beginning of February. “We do not tolerate such attacks,” Eisenreich clarifies. And proves that with facts: So far there have been 64 judgments in the case of criminal hate speech* against politicians – “with fines of up to 145 daily rates and up to eight months imprisonment with probation.” Repeat offenders even face imprisonment! * tz.de/muenchen is an offer from IPPEN.MEDIA
