Domestic politics | Open letter to the left: Don't sacrifice security policy

Police everywhere: Berlin emergency services at the youth protests on October 31st. The Left, the Greens and the SPD have agreed that the number of Berlin police personnel should be maintained. Photo: dpa/Carsten Koall »We expect a left-wing party to also pursue left-wing politics. This includes combating structural racism in state authorities and standing up for a solidarity-based concept of security," explains Lara Möller from the Justice Collective. The initiative, together with numerous other left-wing organizations, including the Refugee Council, the Committee for Fundamental Rights and Democracy, the Campaign for Victims of Racist Police Violence and the Görli zaunfrei alliance, published an open letter to the Berlin Left Party. The organizations are calling on the party to stick to its commitments to anti-racist goals and structural changes to the police formulated in the election program and to implement these if it participates in government.

Lara Möller from Justice Collective does not see this as the case. The exploratory talks showed that people were apparently prepared to sacrifice a progressive security policy at the negotiating table in order to participate in the government, said the activist. “We don’t want to leave that uncommented.”

The security policy positions of the Left are – alongside their plans for socialization – the greatest public outrage among right-wing critics of the party's participation in government. Exaggerated allegations about chat messages that Bundestag member Ferat Koçak had with the son of a “clan boss” caused a stir shortly after the election victory. The campaign gained even more momentum after “Spiegel” published internal notes from mayoral candidate Elif Eralp. In a note there, Eralp expressed concern for herself and her family if she spoke out about a person who was labeled a "terrorist supporter." In an open letter from SPD members from the right wing, she is accused of “bias”.

"The exploratory talks have shown that people are apparently prepared to sacrifice a progressive security policy at the negotiating table in order to participate in the government."

"I said very clearly that I would not let anyone intimidate me," said Eralp last week after the "Spiegel" report. As Governing Mayor, she will ensure the safety of all Berliners. "And not just for social security, but also for individual security." What this could look like under a possible coalition with the Greens and the SPD is set out in outline in the short section on security policy from the three parties' exploratory paper. It says the existing police staffing levels will be maintained. The explorers further explain that the Office for the Protection of the Constitution will remain in its current form, but transparency and parliamentary control should be strengthened. The parties had already stated in the preliminary discussions: "We are strengthening the police and the Office for the Protection of the Constitution in their mission to protect Jewish life in Berlin."

In the Left's election program for the House of Representatives election, it sounded different: "We will examine how we can adjust police staffing levels to the level of other city states, plus capital-related additional requirements in accordance with the capital financing agreement." The Left originally wanted to minimize police numbers and advocate for independent investigation and countermeasures in the event of police violence. And: “It can be observed that more and more police do not lead to more security.” The party also promised in its program to “vehemently” oppose the state practice of racial profiling.

“Many of us were told that we would find a reliable political partner in the party in the fight against racist police practices,” says the letter from the left-wing organizations. One is therefore dismayed that central demands of anti-racist struggles are being weakened, abandoned and undermined in the current negotiations.

The letter calls on Die Linke to implement its election program. Even before reducing police spending, the first thing on the list is the abolition of so-called crime-prone places, as is explicitly stated in the party's program. In these areas, the police have special powers and can carry out personal checks regardless of suspicion. There is no longer any talk of abolition in the exploratory paper. It simply says that they want to evaluate the existing knife and weapon ban zones as well as video surveillance in 2028 with the involvement of the police. The letter criticizes the expansion of AI video surveillance. In general, the signatories speak out against “police build-up and surveillance”.

The letter also warns that racial profiling should be ended in accordance with the formulations from the Left election program. There is nothing about this in the exploratory paper. The Left's demand for an independent body that investigates police violence has not yet been included in the exploratory results. It simply says that the police should be close to the citizens and approachable. However, one formulation can be sympathetically interpreted as a step towards independent control: "They (the police, editor's note) protect civil rights and can be measured against them in their actions."

"We need a policy that demands social security and resolutely opposes racist law-and-order measures."

The exploratory results on the right to assembly are similarly vague. "Freedom of assembly is a valuable asset, which is why we are sticking to Berlin's de-escalation strategy." However, the fact that the Berlin police work to "de-escalate" demonstrations is repeatedly questioned. The UN Human Rights Council and the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, among others, had expressed criticism over the police's handling of pro-Palestine demonstrations. Based on the Left's election program, the letter calls for an end to "repressive police measures during demonstrations" and for pain grips to be banned.

In view of the exploratory results that have so far been inconclusive, the Justice Collective and the other signatory organizations fear that bad experiences will be repeated: "Under previous governments, also with the participation of the Left, police powers were expanded and more and more resources were made available to the police, while social services were rigorously cut." One expects the Left to reverse these tendencies. "We need a policy that demands social security and takes a decisive stand against racist law-and-order measures." If the Left were to implement its election program, that wouldn't be a problem.

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