Reich citizens have long been dismissed as harmless cranks. This changes at the latest with the scandal of the "Reichsbürger" terrorist group around Heinrich XIII. Prince Reuss. Now SPD General Secretary Kühnert is sharply criticizing the Bavarian government.
A few days ago, the "Reichsbürger" terrorist group led by Heinrich XIII. Prince Reuss caused horror. But the group does not appear to be an isolated case. Kevin Kühnert warns the Bavarian government about the large number of "Reich citizens" in the Free State. "The state government must put up with the question of how Bavaria could become the number one Reich citizen biotope in Germany," said the SPD general secretary to the newspapers of the Bayern media group.
In the last half-yearly report by the Bavarian Office for the Protection of the Constitution, "Reich citizens" were only mentioned in connection with the founding of schools and information events, but not as armed bearers who were sometimes prepared to use violence. This is significant, said Kühnert.
According to the Ministry of the Interior, the security authorities have confiscated the firearms of at least 1,050 "Reich citizens" in Germany in recent years. However, about 500 men and women from this milieu still legally had weapons, according to the letter to the interior committee.
At the end of September, around 5,200 people in Bavaria were assigned to the so-called "Reichsbürger" scene - this means that almost a quarter of all "Reichsbürger" known nationwide lives in Bavaria. According to the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, 23,000 people across Germany see themselves as "Reich citizens" - they do not recognize the Federal Republic and its democratic structures.
Recently it became known that the Bavarian police and the Bavarian Office for the Protection of the Constitution also employ officials who are assigned to the so-called movement. According to the Interior Ministry in Munich, a total of 13 civil servants and 3 employees are known who work for the Free State and have connections to the "Reich Citizens" scene. "16 state employees who are enemies of the constitution are just the tip of an iceberg of thousands," said Kühnert. CSU General Secretary Martin Huber rejected the criticism. "Nowhere is action taken against Reich citizens as consistently as in Bavaria," said Huber.
Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser also warns of a growing danger from the "Reichsbürger" scene. "We are not dealing with harmless cranks, but with terrorist suspects," said the SPD politician in the "Bild am Sonntag".
