German MPs discuss immigration bill backed by far right

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00:00Shortly before Germany's election, lawmakers debated a possible ban of the far-right AfD party.

00:07The path to a legal exclusion, however, is long.

00:10On Thursday, MPs discussed the first step, examining whether AfD is anti-constitutional.

00:16The AfD is not a party, it's just a little bit to the right.

00:20They are enemies of the constitution, they are enemies of our democracy, they are enemies of mankind.

00:25AfD didn't hold back.

00:29We embody democracy in Germany, ladies and gentlemen.

00:33We are for referendums, for the separation of powers, for the rule of law, for everyone.

00:43The debate to ban the AfD was resumed after Wednesday's motion for a stricter migration policy,

00:49proposed by the leader of the Conservative Party CDU, Friedrich Merz,

00:54and pushed through the Bundestag with the help of the far-right.

00:57In a rare intervention, Angela Merkel accused Merz of breaking a pledge to not work with the AfD.

01:04I think it is wrong to no longer feel bound by this proposal

01:07and thereby knowingly allow the AfD to gain a majority in a vote in the German Bundestag

01:12on the 29th of January 2025 for the first time.

01:16The leader of the Conservatives tried to diffuse the tensions.

01:20There is no cooperation between the CDU, CSU and the far-right

01:25and the AfD can now triumph as much as they want.

01:29This will not happen.

01:31I want us to solve the problems and for this party to get smaller again, not bigger.

01:39But the controversial immigration vote sparked protests in the largest German cities

01:44like Berlin, Munich, Dortmund and Leipzig for a second day in a row.

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