Government condemns German official’s move to lay a wreath at the grave of Schutztruppe

The Government has condemned the move by Sven Tritschler who is the deputy leader of the Alternative für Deutschland Parliamentary faction, for laying a memorial wreath at the grave of a notorious Schutztruppe officer during a recent visit to Namibia. This act has sparked criticism due to its insensitivity toward historical injustices and the deliberate genocide against the OvaHerero and Nama people. Here is the Deputy Executive Director in the Ministry of International Relations and Cooperation, and the Head of Bilateral and Cooperation Sabine Böhlke-Möller.

According to Nordrhein-Westfalen online, and Der Spiegel, among those reporting on the incident was Verena Schäffer, co-chair of the Greens in the NRW state parliament. She was also on the delegation trip to Namibia. She expressed her outrage on Instagram while she was there.

Greens: “Insult to the Victims”

In Swakopmund’s cemetery, there remains a memorial honouring Germans who died there, with an inscription reading, “They gave their lives for you,” commemorating 61 Germans said to have died around the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries.

According to Schäffer in her Instagram video, Tritschler’s act of laying a wreath at the German soldiers’ graves is a “mockery of the victims of German colonial rule.” In a follow-up statement to WDR, she described the gesture as displaying “complete contempt for the victims of German colonial crimes,” accusing Tritschler of “reversing the roles of perpetrator and victim,” which aligns with the AfD’s revisionist and extremist views.

Schäffer expressed her shock that the AfD misused the committee trip in this manner, emphasizing the trip’s significance for democratic representatives. “It was crucial for us to gather firsthand insights and address the knowledge gaps about this history in Germany,” she said.