The far right won over thirty percent of the votes in Saxony and Thuringia – according to the first poll results given after the closing of polling stations in the two eastern German states. The victory of the Alternative for Germany, because that is the party in question, is considered by entrepreneurs as an approaching “economic catastrophe”.
Entrepreneurs fear that AfD will lead to “catastrophe”
Marie-Christine Ostermann, president of the German Association of Family Businesses, wrote about the “catastrophe” in an article published in Thursday's edition of the newspaper “Handelsblatt”. Entrepreneurs have been very involved in the campaign in recent weeks. However, they did not encourage voting for a specific party, they only advised against voting for the AfD.
German nationalists are supporters of anti-immigration policies. They have used the terrorist attack in Solingen, in which a Syrian man fatally stabbed three people and injured eight others, in their campaign. They have used this situation to argue that uncontrolled immigration has led to an increase in crime on the streets of Germany. Politicians from this party are demanding the deportation of asylum seekers who have committed crimes.
It is precisely this anti-immigration attitude that is unacceptable to business. Marie-Christine Ostermann mentions in the article that due to negative demographic trends, Thuringia is set to lose 385,000 of its 1 million workforce in the next 10 years. There is a risk that one in four positions will no longer be able to be filled. The situation is similar in Saxony.
“Without controlled immigration… Thuringia and Saxony could soon turn off the lights,” Ostermann writes in the “Handelsblatt.” “Without immigrants, nursing homes, hospitals and restaurants will have to limit their operations even more than they do now,” we read further.
Entrepreneurs united against AfD
Entrepreneurs have launched a campaign to raise public awareness – “Made in Germany, made by Vielfalt (diversity)”. “'Made in Germany' is our seal of quality in international competition. It is the basis of our country's prosperity. And we created it together – all the people who work in our companies, regardless of their origin. We know that it is this diversity that determines the economic success of German family businesses” – we read on page this company.
Some really well-known brands got involved in the campaigns. Bauer, Drager, Fischer, Horsh, Kirchhoff, Krone, Rossmann, Stihl and Stolting joined the initiative. The Edeka chain of stores also got involved in the protest. The brand ran a campaign: “Why is blue not an option at Edeka?”, which included slogans such as “there is a colourful variety in the fruit and vegetable section”. The chain wanted to clearly indicate its commitment to values ​​other than those adopted by the AfD.
It is not the first time it has done this. Six years ago, it published a film in which it addressed its customers: “Imagine a supermarket that sells only German products.” The footage shows astonished customers walking along the supermarket's almost empty shelves. Edeka commented on the video with the words: “We love diversity and oppose the right wing.” The film enjoyed a second youth in the German media during this election.
AfD leader Björn Höcke mocked the involvement of German entrepreneurs right after the election. “I hope that these companies will encounter very, very serious economic difficulties,” he said, quoted by “Financial Times“. He then told me that he had recently purchased a chain saw manufactured by Stihl, but that he would not do so again.