Germany is considering scrapping a special law that prohibits insulting politicians after a series of high-profile cases in which private citizens found themselves under police investigation for publicly calling politicians “Shackkopf” (idiot), “Lügenfritz” (lying Fritz) or “Pinocchio” on social media.
Section 188 of germany criminal code It states that anyone found guilty of defamation “against a person engaged in popular political life” can theoretically be imprisoned for up to three years if the offense makes the politician’s public activities “substantially more difficult”. However, in practice, most prosecutions have ended with fines.
The law was tightened in 2021, partly in response to the 2019 assassination of conservative Christian Democrat Walter Lübke, to allow state prosecutors to pursue such crimes even if the politician concerned does not press charges.
Insults and attacks on politicians have been on the rise in Germany in recent years: Police recorded 5,140 crimes targeting political representatives and party members in 2025, according to data reported in May by public broadcaster ARD. This was higher than 3,690 such incidents in 2024 and 2,790 in 2023.
Freedom of expression? Or slander?
In several cases the state has been accused of overreach: in 2024, a 64-year-old pensioner’s home was searched because he had described Green Robert Habach, then the economy minister and Chancellor of the Exchequer, as an “idiot” on social media. Although state prosecutors used Section 188 to justify the search, the man had also used far-right symbols which were banned on the grounds of being unconstitutional. Habaek made allegations against the man, further angering his opponents.
Several politicians, mainly from the ruling centre-right Christian Democratic Union and the opposition Greens, have suggested scrapping the law. “The idea was to better protect municipal and political institutions,” said CDU parliamentary group leader Jens Spahn. south german newspaper In January this year. “But what has emerged is that the powerful have made a special law for themselves.”
Eric Marquardt, a member of the European Parliament from the Greens, said he has received his fair share of online abuse, and acknowledged that politicians have become public punchbags for all kinds of complaints.
Still, he said, that doesn’t mean politicians need a special law to protect themselves. “I don’t know if we really need to be searching people’s homes because of some stupid post,” Marquardt told DW. “If you are insulted as a politician, you can decide for yourself whether someone should be brought to justice or not. It does not matter whether a politician is insulted or someone else.”
No clear definition of ‘insult’ or ‘defamation’
The public debate has been marked by some absurd cases: earlier this year, a Facebook user was fined €2,000 ($2,300) for calling Chancellor Friedrich Merz “Lugenfritz” in a comment below a post. Many Conservative voters have accused the Chancellor of lying because of what they see as his broken campaign promises.
Even US government officials weighed in on the matter. US Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy Sarah Rogers took to Twitter to accuse Germany of “censorship”.
Some critics say the law has been selectively enforced. In one case, state prosecutors decided against prosecuting a man who described Merz as “Pinocchio” in reference to a fairy-tale character whose nose grows longer when he lies, on the grounds that it fell within Germany’s constitutionally enshrined freedom of speech.
“Insult” and “defamation” are not clearly defined in the relevant sections of German law. In the “Lying Fritz” case, state prosecutors said the nickname potentially undermines the Chancellor’s integrity by provoking aggression in the population.
defender of democracy
Some members of the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD), the junior partner in Merz’s coalition, see value in Section 188. “This amounts to a systematic hate campaign against politicians,” Carmen Waze, the SPD’s justice policy spokeswoman in the Bundestag, told DW. “This affects not only the Chancellor, but also the 200,000 unpaid politicians working in local municipalities, and we are experiencing a huge increase in abuse directed at local politicians.”
“Politicians, especially honorary politicians, carry democracy in this country and that is why we need to give them special protection,” he said.
Waze said, it is becoming difficult for political parties to field candidates in local elections. He said he feared online abuse could be used deliberately to deter people from entering politics. He argued, “We think that people who pursue that goal should face special punishment.”
Most Germans seem to agree with Wege. A Forsa Institute poll published in early June found that 58% of Germans wanted to retain Section 188, while 38% wanted it abolished.
The decision has to be taken by the Bundestag
Isaac Schuman, a lawyer who has addressed the issue of defamation before, does not think there is any real need for the law. “Even if we removed the section, the behavior described in it would still be prosecutable,” he told DW. “Sections 185, 186, 187 already prohibit defamation. The only issue will be that politicians will be treated like anyone else.”
Shuman said, “I am sure that Section 188 was imposed with good intentions.” “But, in my experience, it is not local politicians who enforce this paragraph.” Instead, he said he found the law was being used primarily by top politicians who are insulted on social media.
Furthermore, Schuman said that Section 188 could be a threat to democratic freedoms. “We can see that law enforcement officials have become very sensitive to certain expressions, so they are being investigated when people call Merz ‘Pinocchio.’ These are not examples where local politicians are being threatened by far-right extremists,” he said.
Waze said the SPD is ready to change Section 188, specifically changing politician defamation by making it a crime that would require a complaint from the defamed person. At a meeting last week, Germany’s 17 federal and state justice ministers debated Section 188, with some calling for it to be abolished altogether. Finally, the ministers decided on a compromise: Section 188 should apply only to insults by local level politicians. Ultimately, it will be up to Germany’s parliament, the Bundestag, to decide.
Edited by: Reena Goldenberg