German parliament has rowdiest year in decades

German lawmakers were disciplined more times in the current parliamentary session than in the previous four combined, according to a report Sunday in the Augsburger Allgemeine newspaper.

While debates in the Bundestag have a reputation for being particularly dull affairs — especially when compared to the Ukrainian, Taiwanese or UK parliaments, this has slightly changed with the arrival of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, which has tried to play up its anti-establishment reputation.

According to the Augsburger Allgemeine, the majority of reprimands in the Bundestag were directed towards members of the populist party.

In 2020 alone, there were 20 calls to order and one reprimand. A major cause for disturbance has been the failure to wear a mask while entering the parliamentary hall.

The AfD, who have played up coronavirus conspiracy theories and been accused of spreading misinformation, were the main culprits here.

In one instance the parliamentary leader of the AfD, Alexander Gauland, was mockingly told off for failing to wear a mask with the vice president of the Bundestag saying: "I take it that you were mentally somewhere else in that moment, and that's why you forgot [to put on a mask]."

This was quickly followed up by a member of the socialist Left Party adding: "He always is!"

However, it was not just the AfD who needed to be reminded to cover their mouths and noses, with members from the center-left Social Democrats (SPD) and conservative Christian Democrats (CDU) also being called out for the same infraction.

Even Chancellor Angela Merkel has been forced to react to the relative commotion in the Bundestag.

In June, when far-right MPs heckled her for describing the threat of the "radical, authoritarian movement," she mockingly responded: "Someone appears to have been called out."

While the current session which started in 2017 may have been the unruliest since reunification, it doesn't match the raucousness of the pre-unification West German parliament which was based in the city of Bonn.

One prime example given by the Augsburger Allgemeine was the memorable retort by a member of the Green Party — in its first parliamentary session — to the then vice president of the Bundestag.

"Mr. President, with permission, you are an asshole," said Joschka Fischer.

The current Bundestag Vice President and member of the liberal FDP party, Wolfgang Kubicki, told the newspaper that while there are of course lawmakers "who consciously provoke calls to order," it should not be made into a bigger problem than it is.

"The Presidium of the German Bundestag has always been able to respond to these insubordinations with the necessary tact," he said.

ab/mm (dpa, KNA, AFP)