Zwickau:

CDU chief Seidel intends to sue Fliegerbauer

Zwickau, Germany
January 18, 2000
Freie Presse

(raech). CDU faction chairman in the Zwickau city council, Frank Seidel, was said to be the "Julius Streicher from Zwickau, an irresponsible demagogue and fascist": by making this comparison, Kurt Fliegerbauer, professed Scientologist and business manager for Osterstein Castle Management Association, has made for some unrest in the city and beyond. While Seidel intends on suing the construction magnate, the CDU city association and the regional association of Buendnis 90/The Greens reacted by sharply criticizing this use of the Nazi comparison.

The Buendnis-Greens have demanded that "all democrats" decisively distance themselves from Fliegerbauer's diversions. By his selection of words in his letter to the members of the Zwickau city council, he was said to have "transgressed all democratic rules and catapulted himself into isolation," read their opinion. The fact that he had said he had a "clean conscience" in the same letter would be of no avail to him. "By comparing a democratically elected city council with the worst, anti-Semitic, Nazi Germany, the diligent Scientologist, as he calls himself, is acting outside humane norms," Martin Boettger, spokesman for the regional association of the Buendnis/Greens, rated the situation.

If Kurt Fliegerbauer's letter should be typical for the Scientology sect, that would be another reason for the timely implementation of an information and counselling office. The starting point for that, called for by Zwickau's Buendnis-Greens, had been a topic of discussion in the city council December of last year. Its decision was that the city administration would now have to give some thought to the concepts of financing and support.

On Monday of last week, DGB county chairman Werner Schuh mentioned a joint initiative. "I can envision cooperation between unions, churches, political parties, their factions and all who wish to form a front against these machinations under the guidance of an office chosen by the city council," said Schuh.