The poison of the populists and what can help

indicates A bad lesson from Poland, as governments try to the rule of law to cripple. In Austria, there are similar developments.

Prof. Dr. Heribert Prantl, born. 1953 in Nittenau/upper Palatinate, was for 25 years head of the Department of domestic policy of the SZ, then head of the newly established departments opinion. For eight years he was a member of the editorial Board of the süddeutsche Zeitung. Since his retirement from these Offices 1. March, he is a columnist and author of the SZ. He teaches as an honorary Professor for legal studies at the University of Bielefeld. Prantl has studied law, history and philosophy, in parallel, a journalistic training, and in copyright and competition law a doctorate. Before he left in 1988 as political editor for the SZ, he was a judge for six years, then a Prosecutor in Bavaria. He loves the music of the upper Palatinate, compatriot Christoph Willibald Gluck. When he hears the put by he novels, history books, the "pure legal doctrine", and even the Süddeutsche Zeitung.

Heribert Prantl has written the price of numerous political books and, for the first book, "Germany, flammable" he received the Geschwister-Scholl -. Among its other awards including the science award of the University of Regensburg and of the house of Thurn and Taxis, the Kurt-Tucholsky-prize of the rhetoric-the price of the University of Tübingen, Germany, Hildegard Hamm-Brücher-price, of the seven Pfeiffer-price, of the Roman-Herzog-prize of the Wilhelm-Hoegner-price and the Brüder-Grimm-prize of the University of Marburg. For his editorials on the major Christian holidays of the faculty of theology of the University of Erlangen-Nürnberg, he was awarded the Dr. h. C. theology. Recent book publications: "In the name of humanity. Save the refugees" (2015); "in Spite of all of this. Europe, you got to love" (2016); "directions for use of the populists" (2017); "From the large and small resistance" (2018).

Every Sunday is busy Heribert Prantl, a columnist and author of the süddeutsche Zeitung, with a theme that is in the coming week - and sometimes beyond - to be relevant. Here you can order a "His view" as a weekly Newsletter exclusively for his personal reading recommendations.

Everyone knows what is Carsharing. There's a whole bunch of people share a car. That is practically, economically and ecologically. Therefore, this car-sharing is becoming more and more popular. It would be nice if it would be with the separation of powers and, if so, the separation of powers would be more popular. The opposite is the case. Many people don't know what that means. But the autocrats in Poland and Hungary know very well. Autocrat of the people, the rule prefer to be alone and undisturbed. They hate the separation of powers, you try everything to shake them off and abolish.

autocrats want to be alone all of the state violence. You don't want to share; you don't want that somebody's still out there, the state has violence; you don't want them to be controlled. For this control, an independent judiciary and the rule of law; an independent judicial autocrats do not tolerate a judiciary accept it only if it is dependent on you. They justify this imperiousness with democracy; they were eventually elected.

The Perversion of democracy

But this is a capitalistic misconception of democracy, which is the Perversion of democracy. This Perversion is particularly brutal in Turkey, and particularly insidious, in Hungary and in Poland. Today is supposed to be given the occasion of Poland. Poland has, one must say that, unfortunately, the rule of law abolished. The ruling PiS party justifies this atrocity with democracy; they have achieved in the elections of the majority. That's why you don't judge the fit of her; therefore, she sends a judge in the compulsory pension and filled the courts with followers.

to understand The electoral act, miss autocrats to be understood as empowerment to self-empowerment: The autocrat keeps to themselves for the state. And he is, as he thinks proper; he is with those who are his enemies, or he thinks, as he pleases. The Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan casts you into prison. Jarosław Kaczyński, head of the Polish government party, makes you out of their Offices and throw. First, he has made the journalists of the public broadcasting and television - who does not spurt, was dismissed. Then at the judges. And Kaczyński is usual, that people bow and scrape.

is The Name of the resistance

But all of it. There are resistance. And I want to tell you today. The resistance in Poland is a beautiful name - his name is Małgorzata Gersdorf. Małgorzata is a female Polish first name, in English Margaret. The bearer of this Name is a wonderfully wise, 66-year-old lawyer and Professor of Law. It was during the eighties in the trade Union movement, solidarity, active, forced the Communist Regime in Poland in the knee. Gersdorf was Dean of the faculty of law in Warsaw, has been named 2008 judge of the Supreme court and rose from 2014 to the President - to the PiS-government directed their eviction. Gersdorf will be awarded next Saturday in Stuttgart, the Theodor-Heuss-prize - for their "resistance to the rule of law".

Małgorzata Gersdorf was and is the President of the Supreme court in Poland. You have to "and write" because the PiS government forced them (and many other judges) almost overnight way, and unconstitutional in Pension sent - it is not reduced simply to the Quick the age limit from 70 to 65 years, cared for in the constitutional term of office. You wanted a free Hand. It was a measure of many in the Wake of the so-called judicial reform, which was a law-destruction and the end of the independence of the Polish judiciary means.

Małgorzata Gersdorf: In a judge's robe and with a white Rose

Gersdorf was the but not like: "I note that my term of office to 30. April 2020 duration, and I power of the highest Law of the Republic of Poland, of the Constitution, to the administration, am committed to". So she wrote to the state President, and appeared, clothed in your judge's robe and with a white Rose in Hand, in your court for service, even though the government apostrophierte them as "a. D.". She remained, she simply continued to work, day in and day out. The Polish government was irritated, because she had not expected it. And irritated the government, as the European court of justice made in an emergency session at the Forced retirement undo.

This victory of the rule of law and the separation of powers, however, was only a small victory. Because the Wait for the normal Retirement of Gersdorf & Co, the government takes too long, it creates new Judge to the independent and old judges dependent new overrule. And at the same time you hunt a new law after the Parliament, the judiciary make final to a fulfilling body of the PiS-government.

Vienna to Warsaw's footsteps?

The autocrats don't want to understand that democracy is more than a voting procedure; it is a community of values. When the constitutional values are not respected, the independence of the judge is ignored, if the freedom of the press, choked and strangled - then democracy is worthless.

The self-empowerment of populist extremists will begin regular attacks on freedom of the press: As it was in Hungary and Poland, so it is now in Austria. The deserts, attacks the FPÖ General Secretary Harald Vilimsky on the ORF journalist Armin Wolf are part of a large-scale campaign of Intimidation against the media. Norbert Steger, the FPÖ and fatal way Trustees-the chief of the ORF, Armin Wolf cynical a "Sabbatical" close.

The light brown of Austria

The ORF to his deprived of independent, critical potential, it is to be converted into a propaganda machine. Who does not give in, flies. Not to miss, so the "Blue" that you would have to call it honestly "light brown" hope, its effect on Newspaper journalists. This is not a fire hazard - freedom of the press is an indicator of fundamental rights: When freedom of the press is threatened, and is threatened, the threat of other fundamental rights on the foot, then judicial independence is in danger. In Austria, this beautiful country in the heart of Europe, has reached the right-wing populist intoxication is a fundamental right dangerous level.

The European elections in three weeks is the opportunity to strengthen the fundamental rights against their rivals.