Fusion of fascist parties ahead in Germany?

[L.J.Solidarity]

According to some (http://www.berlinonline.de/berliner-zeitung/archiv/.bin/dump.fcgi/2009/0116/politik/0030/index.html) rumors (http://www.antifaschistische-nachrichten.de/2009/02/1worchgefaehrte.shtml) (links in German, sorry) the two biggest fascist parties in Germany, NPD and DVU, are going to become fused in the near future. The reason is that while the DVU mainly consists of very old people and is virtually inactive outside election campaigns (having earned the nickname "phantom party"), it's traditional leader and owner recently stepped down due to old age and passed leadership on to a much younger former NPD member. The NPD itself, while more successful both in terms of recruiting younger neo-nazis and gaining votes, is chronically suffering from cash shortage and internal turmoil. It is expected that the party's leader, Udo Voigt, is going to be toppled at their congress this month and most likely replaced by Andreas Molau, a "moderate" fascist who claims to be opposed to using violence and keeps distancing himself from the most obvious nazis in his party, who openly promote "national socialism". While his election might cause a split in the NPD, it will also make the party much more appealing to older fascists like those in the DVU, who prefer "calm and order" over militant right-wing extremism. This lets a fusion appear not that unlikely, keeping in mind that the two parties have already been working together in the so-called "Deutschlandpakt" ("Pact for Germany"), which essentially means they don't run against each other in elections and mutually support their campaigns, since 2004. A united fascist party would have 10,000+ members and, while probably excluding the most aggressive neo-nazi elements, might stand a chance of gaining representation in several state parliaments and would have a much easier time reaching "ordinary people" with their propaganda then both of the parties on their own.

PS: I should probably have posted this in antifascism, sorry.

[Rjevan]

Uh-oh, this is no good news. I didn't hear of this rumors before but it seems logical. Actually I was hoping for the collapse of the NPD (for what it's worth, I'm sure there would have been a successor soon) because of their financial deficit and the interior conflicts.
But uniting with a more moderate fascist party and trying to appeal more to the middle classes with "calm and order" instead of uniting some hardcore-neonazis with "Heil to the 4th Reich" could win them a significantly increasing number of votes. :unsure:
Let's hope that this are only rumors and if not let's hope that they gamble away their chances with their typical idiotic actions.

[Cheung Mo]

A few years ago a German called me a neo-Nazi upon finding out that I was member of NDP at the time. He thought I was referring to the English translation of the NPD's name, rather than to the Canadian social democratic party.

[L.J.Solidarity]

The situation has changed recently, as the NPD is now obviously broke (with € 1.9 million of debt and an alleged monthly deficit of € 80,000) and Molau left the party this weekend, joining the DVU instead. I guess this makes a fusion less likely, as NPD seems to be going bankrupt, they might simply cease to exist as a party, with chunks of the membership joining DVU, regrouping into a "new NPD" or forming tiny splinter parties. Hopefully, fascists in Germany will be weakened rather than strengthened for years to come.

[Rjevan]

Ah, as I said

let's hope that they gamble away their chances with their typical idiotic actions.
Well, I think that the NPD will reorganise if they collapse or the DVU will become stonger and be the "new NPD" here but nevertheless I'm happy that the NPD is in big trouble. :D


Hopefully, fascists in Germany will be weakened rather than strengthened for years to come
Hopefully!