A report published by the German Domestic Intelligence Agency says less than one per cent of the country’s police forces, security Agencies and military personnel display far-right world-views and sympathies.
The report is part of a wider inquiry into extremism in the German Public Service following instances of far-right views being espoused and shared among Public Servants, particularly police officers, in several States.
It seeks to dispel concerns that authorities have turned a blind eye to a potentially dangerous rise in extreme nationalism.
The report lists 319 cases of right-wing extremism uncovered in the police and other security forces between 2017 and 2020.
Minister for the Interior, Horst Seehofer used the report to play down the cases.
“The result of the report is clear: We have a small number of cases,” Mr Seehofer said.
“This means that the very overwhelming majority of security employees, meaning more than 99 per cent, abide by the Constitution,” he said.
Mr Seehofer said the findings also meant there was no structural problem with right-wing extremism among security forces at the Federal level.
He commissioned the wider report into the scope of extremism within the Public Service last year following the deadly shooting of a pro-immigration politician in Hesse by a suspected far-right sympathiser.
In recent months, German police forces have faced revelations of sharing extremist content in group messages and accusations of sending threatening emails to legislators of Turkish heritage.
Berlin, 8 October 2020
