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Fine of up to 1000 euros
:
Bremen bans Reich flags in public
A man holds up a Reich flag during a protest against the Crown’s measures in Berlin (file photo).
Photo: dpa / Christoph Soeder
Bremen The Reich and Reich war flags are considered a distinctive mark of right-wing extremists. The state of Bremen now bans them in public. The owners face a fine of up to 1000 euros.
A corresponding decree comes into force on Monday, according to what the authorities of the interior of the Hanseatic city announced this Friday.
Consequently, the Police Law will be supplemented by a provision that prohibits the public display and use of historical flags. Officials can confiscate flags in case of violations.
Bremen Interior Senator Ulrich Mäurer (SPD) described the flags as “symbols of National Socialist and xenophobic sentiments” that should be banned from the public. “It was time to act,” he said, referring to recent events at demonstrations against measures to contain the crown pandemic in Berlin, where right-wing extremists waved the flags of the German Empire in front of the Reichstag.
The Reich and Reich war flags have long been considered a symbol of identification for right-wing extremists, citizens of the Reich, and other opponents of democracy. Unlike swastika flags and similar National Socialist insignia, they are not prohibited. So far, there have only been provisions that the police can confiscate them in certain cases, for example during demonstrations.
According to the Bremen Interior Authority, the decree justifies the ban by stating that displaying the black, white and red flags “represents a lasting deterioration in the requirements for orderly civic coexistence and therefore a danger to public order.” It applies to all variants of the Reich war flag. The simple imperial flag is only affected if “there is a specific taunt effect in the individual case.”
