The two political parties with the most dramatic losses at the recent elections, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), often called the “black” party due to its traditional color, and the Social Democratic Party (SPD), known as the “red” party, are in advanced negotiations to form a coalition coalition-government —nicknamed “BlackRed” or even “BlackRot” by critics. In the U.S. you are used to a two-party system with Democrats and Republicans, but Germany’s system often involves coalitions because no single party typically wins a majority.
Right now, the CDU (think center-right, like moderate Republicans) and SPD (center-left, somewhat like Democrats) are hashing out a deal to govern together after recent elections. Their stated goal? To “strengthen representative democracy.” But some of their leaked proposals have raised eyebrows—and alarm bells—because they seem to involve curbing free speech and even banning certain politicians from running for office. Here’s what’s going on.
Scrapping Transparency: Goodbye to the Germany’s Freedom of Information Act
One of the most shocking ideas in the leaked coalition papers is the plan to ditch Germany’s Freedom of Information Act (IFG), similar to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) in the US, which lets citizens request government records—like emails or reports—to hold officials accountable. Germany’s IFG, passed in 2006, does the same, giving people access to federal agency data. It’s been a tool for exposing scandals, like a botched highway toll project, health agency cover-ups during COVID, or shady financial deals tied to tax evasion. German media, like the public broadcaster ZDF, had called this law a game-changer for transparency.
But the BlackRed coalition wants to “abolish it in its current form,” according to the leaked documents. In an Orwellian slant the CDU claims this is part of modernizing Germany’s parliament, the Bundestag, and making it better at overseeing the government. Critics aren’t buying it. News outlets like T-Online call it a “direct attack on citizens,” not a reform. The CDU’s Member of Parliament, Philipp Amthor, a politician once embarrassed by IFG disclosures, is spinning it as an update, and the SPD’s reaction has been lukewarm at best.
The proposal’s still in blue ink—meaning it’s up for debate—but even suggesting it’s negotiable has sparked outrage. Germany’s journalists’ union and the opposition Free Democratic Party (FDP, a pro-business group) are slamming it, arguing it’s a power grab dressed up as “reducing bureaucracy.” The FDP quipped, “The motto seems to be: ‘The citizen doesn’t need to know everything!’” Over 100,000 requests have been filed under this law—scrapping it would blind the public to government actions.
Criminalizing “Lies”: A Slippery Slope for Free Speech It gets worse
The coalition also wants to crack down on what they call the “deliberate spread of false factual claims.” Their argument? Free speech doesn’t cover lies, so they want “state-independent media oversight” to step in, based on “clear legal guidelines,” to fight “information manipulation, hate, and incitement.” Sounds noble, right? But here’s the catch: who decides what’s a lie, what is hate and what is incitement? These terms are rubber, you can stretch the arbitrarily to suit your purpose. In the U.S., free speech is sacred under the First Amendment, even if someone’s spouting nonsense like “the Earth is flat.” Germany’s constitution protects free expression too, but with limits—like laws against Holocaust denial or defamation. Courts there already say provably false statements aren’t protected if they’re just facts, not opinions. But if those “facts” mix with opinions—like in a political rant—they still get a shield for the time beeing.
The BlackRed plan, though, goes further. They want to make spreading “false claims” a crime, separate from existing laws like slander. German columnist Nikolaus Blome, writing in “Der Spiegel”, says this “well-meaning” idea terrifies him—it’s too vague.” Die Welt”, another major paper, agrees: lying is covered by free speech unless it crosses into clear legal violations, and fuzzy terms like “hate and incitement” aren’t legal definitions—they’re buzzwords for activist groups. Imagine a U.S. government agency deciding which political tweets are “false” and punishing the posters. Who’d run that? A “Ministry of Truth”? Critics see a huge risk of abuse here, especially in heated political debates where “truth” is often subjective.
Banning Politicians: “Incitement” as a Career Ender
Then there’s the kicker: the coalition’s talking about stripping people of their right to run for office if they’re convicted multiple times of “incitement” (Volksverhetzung in German). This law already covers things like hate speech or promoting violence against groups. The CDU and SPD want to toughen it up and add a penalty: if you’re found guilty more than once, you’re barred from elected office, at least temporarily. They frame it as “strengthening democracy’s resilience” against terrorism, antisemitism, and hate. They also want to explore punishing public officials or soldiers who share extremist stuff (speaking out against the government) in private chats.
In the U.S., barring someone from running for office is rare and usually tied to serious crimes like treason—think of the 14th Amendment after the Civil War. Germany’s proposal feels more like a political weapon against the opposition. The SPD’s been pushing this “eligibility ban” for a while, and now it’s in the coalition talks. “Die Welt” reports it’s aimed at extremists, but the vagueness of “incitement” could snag anyone with controversial views. Picture a U.S. politician banned from Congress for “hate speech” after a few convictions—supporters would cry foul, and opponents would cheer. In Germany, critics see this as democracy eating itself: silencing dissent under the guise of protecting it.
What’s the Big Picture?
The CDU and SPD say all this—dumping the IFG, policing “lies,” banning candidates—is about making democracy stronger and safer. They’re pitching it as a response to misinformation, extremism, and public distrust, which have been hot topics since COVID and the rise of patriotic conservative groups like the Alternative für Deutschland (AfD). But to many Germans, it looks like a power grab, what it is!
For U.S. readers, think of it this way: imagine a Republican-Democrat coalition promising to “fix” Congress by killing FOIA, jailing people for “fake news,” and barring candidates for “hate speech.” You’d have protests in the streets. That’s the vibe in Germany right now—except their system’s more used to compromise, so the backlash is still brewing. Whether these plans survive the final coalition deal is unclear, but they’ve already lit a fuse. Germany’s about to test how much mess it can handle—or suppress.
