AfD lawmaker files criminal complaint against comedian Kurt Krömer
Brandenburg legislator Dennis Hohloch accuses the Berlin comedian of incitement and insult over a video targeting AfD voters. Broadcaster ZDF distanced itself from the post.
Archive image · Photo: JCS / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped and resized)
Dennis Hohloch, a lawmaker for the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) in Brandenburg's state parliament, has filed a criminal complaint against Berlin comedian Kurt Krömer, accusing him of incitement to hatred and insult. The complaint concerns an Instagram video posted on Oct. 9 in which Krömer said he did not want AfD voters at his readings. “No tickets for AfD voters,” he said, adding: “I don't want your money, it stinks – just like you.”
Hohloch, a member of the AfD's national executive, called the remarks a blanket denigration of people. “We are not just talking about AfD members here, we are talking about a much larger group,” he said. He also launched an online petition urging public broadcaster ZDF to end its work with Krömer. ZDF plans four episodes of a show with him, “Krömers letzte Stunde,” for its ZDFneo channel starting Nov. 26.
ZDF distanced itself, saying the post was a statement “unrelated to any ZDF production.” Krömer did not address the complaint but responded to the petition on Wednesday with a video showing a photo of Hohloch and two laughing emojis. In the video, the comedian said Hohloch is among the Brandenburg AfD lawmakers whom the state's domestic intelligence agency lists as “confirmed right-wing extremists.”