Court hears ban: Compact under pressure – what’s behind it?

Court hears ban: Compact under pressure – what’s behind it?

In the current proceedings before the Federal Administrative Court (BVerwG), the right-wing extremist magazine Compact faced with serious allegations. The ban by former Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) in July 2024 is based on violations of the constitutional order and the human dignity of migrants and was described by Faeser as a “central mouthpiece of the right-wing extremist scene”. Against this background, Compact editor-in-chief Jürgen Elsässer filed a lawsuit against this decision and achieved partial success in an urgent application in August 2024, which allowed the magazine to appear again because the prospects of success of the lawsuit were classified as open.

The second hearing began on June 10, 2025, in which the trial representative from the Ministry of the Interior presented, among other things, thick files with incriminating passages from Compact. Compromising language about migration policy was displayed on screens in the courtroom. Compact's lawyer, Ulrich Vosgerau, argued that these statements merely constituted constitutional expressions of opinion. “We want to overthrow the regime,” the presiding judge was quoted as saying by Elsässer, which further fueled the heated debate in the courtroom.

Accusations and reaction

The focus of the allegations is the assessment of naturalized Germans as second-class citizens and the disdain of foreigners. While Vosgerau presented Compact's position as legal and non-violent, Interior Ministry representative Wolfgang Roth argued that the magazine violated the constitutional order in its reporting. This was supported by the quotes presented, which were also discussed in the context of the connections to Martin Sellner, known as the head of the Identitarian Movement. Sellner is considered anti-constitutional and has written regularly for Compact in the past.

Compact has also become the focus of the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV). The authority describes the magazine as a platform for agitation against the federal government and the political system. Compact's reporting in particular is classified as conspiracy ideology and anti-Semitic. The connections to right-wing extremist groups such as the Identitarian Movement Germany and the regional party Free Saxony have provided additional topics of discussion among the public.

Legal basis of the ban

For the decision on the ban, Faeser relied on Article 9 of the Basic Law, which regulates the ban on associations that violate the constitutional order. The legal dispute will now remain exciting as the BVerwG analyzes the proportionality of the ban. Roth made it clear that a ban was justified if human dignity was violated, while Vosgerau called for mitigating measures. The court's final decision is expected on June 24, 2025.

In the event of defeat, Compact plans to appeal to both the Federal Constitutional Court and the European Court of Human Rights. With a monthly circulation of around 40,000 printed copies and a YouTube channel that has over 512,000 subscribers, the magazine remains a controversial construct in the German media landscape. It remains to be seen how the court ruling will affect the future of Compact and its influence.