Leipzig Book Fair: Boos and protests towards “culture war minister” – Interior Minister Dobrindt defends Weimer | EUROtoday

Several hundred folks protested in Leipzig towards the cultural coverage of the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and Media, Wolfram Weimer. They gathered in entrance of the Gewandhaus, the place he was to provide a speech that night on the opening ceremony of the Leipzig Book Fair. Participants within the rally held up indicators calling for Weimer’s resignation or calling him the “culture war minister.”

At the demonstration, a press release from the three left-wing bookstores that the Minister of State for Culture had faraway from the checklist of nominees for the German Bookstore Prize was learn out.

The booksellers mentioned they have been overwhelmed in some ways. “We are very pleased that people of solidarity are gathering to defend themselves against the embarrassing practice of Kulturkampf Minister Wolfram Weimar.”

“We applied for a prize, would have received it, were lied to and subsequently canceled because we didn’t fit the mold of an ultra-conservative minister. He is calling for an attack on bookstores, on places of irritation where people can find out about the world in which they have to live,” it continued. The bookstores from Berlin, Bremen and Göttingen are suing towards the choice of the Minister of State for Culture.

Weimer justified the abolition of the bookstores with “findings relevant to the protection of the constitution”. The German Book Trade Association additionally criticizes this strategy. The bookstores ought to obtain the German Book Trade Prize, “be it after a court case or through insight,” mentioned the overall supervisor of the business affiliation, Peter Kraus vom Cleff.

In his personal phrases, Weimer does not know what the Office for the Protection of the Constitution has towards the three left-wing outlets excluded from the German Bookstore Prize. “The Office for the Protection of the Constitution is not allowed to tell us that in detail,” the non-party politician instructed “Zeit”.

Federal Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt confirmed this process. With such inquiries there may be suggestions as as to whether there are “hits”, however not on the content material. At the identical time, Dobrindt emphasised that he had not requested Weimer for this constitutional assessment.

Dobrindt defended the Minister of State for Culture’s actions within the controversy. If, after drawing conclusions from info from the Office for the Protection of the Constitution, he says that he’s not awarding a prize, then he thinks that’s “in principle okay in terms of logic,” mentioned Dobrindt (CSU) within the ARD program “Maischberger”. Dobrindt’s Interior Ministry stories to the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution.