Greens Call for Review of Heidenau's "Stolperstein" Resolution

Following the Heidenau City Council’s decision to halt the installation of additional Stolpersteine, the Green Party is calling for an investigation by the local government oversight authority. The Green Party’s state parliamentary caucus stated that there is a growing number of voices questioning the legal validity of the decision. 

“Heidenau needs to send a clear signal of its stance now, rather than having political leaders shy away from the issue,” said Dresden State Representative Thomas Löser. An investigation by the local government oversight authority is the very least that should be done. The district administration office of the Saxon Switzerland-Osterzgebirge district would be responsible for this.

The Greens also referred to the meeting of the administrative committee in Heidenau on Tuesday evening, at which three petitions opposing the resolution are on the agenda. “The district administrator and the mayor cannot simply brush aside the more than 120,000 signatories of an online petition opposing the city council’s decision to ban Stolpersteine in Heidenau,” said Löser.

No more Stolpersteine will be laid in Heidenau

At the end of September, the Heidenau City Council approved by a majority vote a motion by the AfD and CDU to no longer lay Stolpersteine in public streets. Instead, commemoration should preferably take place at the city’s Nordfriedhof cemetery, “so that direct contact with the memorial elements is prevented,” the resolution stated.

The decision sparked nationwide criticism and debate. A petition against the resolution, launched by the Association of Victims of the Nazi Regime—Federation of Anti-Fascists on the “innn.it” platform, has been signed by approximately 123,000 people. The city of Heidenau has a population of approximately 16,600.

Closed-door deliberation on petitions

The petitions will be discussed on Tuesday evening during the closed-door portion of the administrative committee meeting. According to the city administration, no resolution will be passed at that time.

Löser also criticized the CDU’s cooperation with the AfD as telling. The state party’s half-hearted attempts to distance itself were not enough, he said. “I expect significantly more commitment from a party that claims to stand firmly alongside the Jewish people in this country.”