Federal Administrative Court Overturns Ban on Hammerskins Deutschland

Germany's Federal Administrative Court (BVerwG) has overturned the ban on the far-right group 'Hammerskins Deutschland,' which was initially imposed by the Federal Ministry of the Interior (BMI) in July 2023. The Ministry had banned the group citing its extremist nature, including promotion of 'protection of the white Aryan race' and opposition to demographic changes. However, the court found that there was no cohesive nationwide organization justifying a total ban.

The ruling emphasized that while there are several local chapters of the Hammerskins operating in Germany, these chapters act independently without forming a unified national association. The court clarified that a legal association requires a permanent structure with binding decision-making processes, which the Hammerskins lack. As such, the presence of potential grounds for banning the group was deemed irrelevant without a recognized nationwide organization.

According to the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, around 130 Hammerskins members are active in Germany, with the group having originated as a neo-Nazi brotherhood in the USA and establishing regional chapters since the early 1990s. Although the ban was lifted due to insufficient evidence that the group operates on a nationwide influential level, the court did not rule on whether the Hammerskins are unconstitutional.

The ruling allows authorities to still ban individual chapters if specific legal grounds are established. Notably, supporters of the Hammerskins continue to network with right-wing extremists across Europe, maintaining their influence despite the court’s decision.

Presiding Judge of the BVerwG highlighted that the absence of a stable national organizational structure was decisive in overturning the ban, reiterating the legal distinction necessary to prohibit associations under German law. This decision underlines the challenges authorities face in regulating loosely connected extremist groups lacking centralized structures.