In 2015, conspiracists feared refugees were taking over. Today they see dark global forces gaining power amid a global pandemic. Alexander Görlach asks: What happens when society can no longer agree on basic facts?
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Image: picture-alliance/dpa/J. Hogan
Conspiracy theories have now reached the heart of society. It may still be early for any empirical data, but over the past few days I've seen plenty of anecdotal evidence: my Facebook timeline has been full of comments speaking out against virologists, Bill Gates, vaccinations, Angela Merkel and against the strict measures introduced to stem the COVID-19 pandemic.
Back in 2015, when the refugee crisis unfolded in Europe, conspiracy theories gained a strong foothold in Germany. Proponents claimed Chancellor Merkel was secretly planning to bring in people from the Middle East and Asia in order to replace the German population; they suspected a global conspiracy.
The name of billionaire philanthropist George Soros has been tied to many of these theories, giving those who believe in them an excuse to pin the blame on a supposed worldwide Jewish conspiracy. Followers of Germany's Reichsbürger movement, who deny the legitimacy of the German state and issue their own identity documents, have regularly chimed in from the fringes. Some of their theories were so bleak that in the end they became somewhat amusing. But back then, I didn't feel the noose of the conspirators tightening around my neck.
Conspiracy theorists around the world have blamed Bill Gates and other world figures for the pandemicImage: picture-alliance/dpa/S. Barbour
It's different this time, but why? Perhaps because the COVID-19 pandemic has affected literally everyone. Children can't go to day care, kindergarten or school, and parents are forced to care for them at home while still finding a way to make a living. Universities have been shut down, and countless businesses — from restaurants to hair salons — were closed for weeks, destroying livelihoods. Older people can't visit with their relatives and friends. Those who are sick, but don't have COVID-19, are forced to wait for treatments and surgeries. And people who end up succumbing to the coronavirus pandemic die a slow death by suffocation.
Can this really be true? Can a virus really do this to our society? With a sigh, most people will likely say yes, perhaps even with tears in their eyes. The vociferous crowds gathering in public spaces, loudly demanding an end to the lockdown measures, are united by their firm belief that "those who are in charge" are colluding with evildoers.
Coronavirus hoaxes abound
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Questioning basic facts
Back in 2015, people who had always opposed immigration weren't criticizing reality, but how politicians were dealing with the influx of around 1 million refugees. These days, they're mainly questioning basic facts, disputing scientific evidence of how the virus spreads. But even on this point there doesn't seem to be agreement. Some people think COVID-19 is no worse than seasonal flu, while others support herd immunity, a position supported by a small minority in the international community. Still others — and this movement has existed for a long time — reject vaccinations of any kind, believing them to be useless. Even though at this point, a vaccine has yet to be developed against COVID-19.
Recent protests against Germany's pandemic lockdown measures in Stuttgart attracted thousandsImage: picture-alliance/dpa/C. Schmidt
What happens when a society can no longer agree on the basic facts? Eventually, there won't be any place or institution left for open debate on the different ways that facts can be interpreted — if that isn't already the case. In Germany, this attitude has already spread throughout society: recently, a few high-ranking Catholic bishops published an open letter spouting off about a "world government."
The world's autocrats, who in recent years have consistently discredited experts and belittled elites, are celebrating this chaos, happy in the knowledge that they have managed to convince their believers. They don't celebrate education and knowledge; instead, they glorify baseless rumors and praise strongman tactics. In the end, stupidity and superstition will drive the nails in the coffin of democracy. This decline has nothing to do with the coronavirus; populists have been slowly infusing our society with this poison for years.
The Reichsbürger movement in Germany
They reject the legitimacy of Germany's government. Some are prepared to use violence. Who are the Reichsbürger? And what is Germany doing about them?
Image: picture-alliance/chromorange/C. Ohde
What do Reichsbürger believe?
"Reichsbürger" translates to "citizens of the Reich." The nebulous movement rejects the modern German state, and insists that the German Empire's 1937 or 1871 borders still exist and the modern country is an administrative construct still occupied by Allied powers. For Reichsbürger, the government, parliament, judiciary and security agencies are puppets installed and controlled by foreigners.
Image: picture-alliance/SULUPRESS/MV
The first 'Reichsbürger' Wolfgang Ebel
Wolfgang Ebel was the first to argue the German Reich's continued to exist. A resident of West Berlin, he worked for Berlin S-bahn local train service which the GDR operated under the label "Deutsche Reichsbahn." When he got sacked in 1980 he argued that he was actually a civil servant of the Reich and could not be sacked by a post-war institution. He lost all his court cases and turned radical.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/D. Ebener
What do they do?
The Reichsbürger refuse to pay taxes or fines. They see their personal property, such as their houses, as independent entities outside the authority of the Federal Republic of Germany, and reject the German constitution and other legal texts, but also swamp German courts with lawsuits. They produce their own aspirational documents such as passports and driving licenses.
Image: picture-alliance/Bildagentur-online/Ohde
How much of a threat are they?
The Reichsbürger scene began to develop in the 1980s and is a disparate, leaderless movement that has grown to about 23,000 supporters, according to German intelligence officials. Of those, about 950 have been identified as far-right extremists and at least 1,000 have a license to own firearms. Many subscribe to antisemitic ideologies.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/R. Weihrauch
Who are its members? One was Mr. Germany
According to German authorities, the average Reichsbürger is 50 years old, male, and is socially and financially disadvantaged. The movement's members are concentrated in the southern and eastern parts of Germany. Adrian Ursache, a former winner of the Mister Germany beauty pageant, is also a Reichsbürger and was sentenced to seven years in prison in 2019 for shooting and injuring a policeman.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/H. Schmidt
Turning point
The case of Wolfgang P., who in October 2017 was sentenced to life in prison for murdering a police officer, is seen as a turning point for how German authorities deal with the extremist group. P., an alleged Reichsbürger member, shot at officers who were raiding his home to confiscate weapons. The case gained international attention and set off alarm bells over the escalation of violence.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/D. Karmann
What are the authorities doing about it?
German authorities were accused of long underestimating the threat. In 2017 for the first time Germany’s domestic intelligence service documented extremist crimes perpetrated by individual Reichsbürger. Since then there have been several raids on Reichsbürger targets and subgroups have been banned. Police and military have also probed whether they have Reichsbürger in their own ranks.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/P. Zinken
International parallels, conspiracy theories
Reichsbürger have been seen waving Russian flags, leading to allegations that they are funded by Russia with the aim to destabilize the German government. Germany's Reichsbürger are also compared to US groups such as "freemen-on-the-land," who believe that they are bound only by laws they consent to and can therefore declare themselves independent of the government and the rule of law.
Image: DW/D. Vachedin
Ringleader Heinrich XIII, Prince Reuss
The prince was the ringleader of "Reichsbürger" affiliates who planned a coup in 2022. He had lost several court cases to regain lost lands and properties, and then publicly reiterated the belief that the current democratic Federal Republic has no valid basis, peddled well-worn antisemitic tropes and suggested to reinstate the Kaiser, who had been removed against the wishes of the people.
Image: Boris Roessler/picture alliance/dpa
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Alexander Görlach is a senior fellow with the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs and a senior research associate at the Religion & International Studies Institute at Cambridge University. He has also held a number of scholarly and advisory positions at Harvard University, National Taiwan University and the City University of Hong Kong. He holds doctorate degrees in comparative religion and linguistics.
