CIR criticises AfD party conference in Erfurt and supports the call for a ban procedure against the AfD

04.07.2026

The International Ravensbrück Committee (CIR) expresses its concern about the growing influence of the AfD and firmly opposes the holding of its party conference on 4 July 2026 in Erfurt, particularly due to its proximity to the memorial site of the former Buchenwald concentration camp. It joins the demand of the International Committee Buchenwald-Dora and Kommandos. The CIR also supports initiating proceedings to ban the AfD before the Federal Constitutional Court.

Statement by the ICBD on the AfD Party Conference in Erfurt (4–5 July 2026)

On 4 and 5 July 2026, the AfD is holding its national party conference in Erfurt – within sight of the bell tower of the Buchenwald Memorial and coinciding with the 100th anniversary of the NSDAP party conference in Weimar.

On this occasion, the International Committee Buchenwald Dora and Kommandos (ICBD) expressly endorses the demand made by the International Auschwitz Committee on 11 February 2026:

The Federal Government, the Federal Parliament, or the Federal Council must finally create the conditions for proceedings to ban the AfD before the Federal Constitutional Court.

It must be made clear that a party which is anti-constitutional and, in some respects, demonstrably far-right must be reined in within the Federal Republic of Germany before it undermines democratic structures themselves.

The prisoners of the Buchenwald and Mittelbau-Dora concentration camps and their satellite camps – like all those persecuted under National Socialism – experienced first-hand what it means when people are denied their humanity.

The AfD trivialises Nazi crimes, draws positive parallels with German fascism, and vehemently opposes the memorial sites and educational institutions dedicated to the history of Nazi crimes, which were hard-won over decades. We condemn this in the strongest possible terms.

A motion to ban a party may entail risks – but failing to act entails far greater risks. In the interest of democracy – for which many concentration camp prisoners also fought, and which protects fundamental rights and defends minorities – we must not hesitate any longer.