Within the European Union, with each passing day, xenophobia and racism are growing.
For the last couple of years, the dangers posed and attacks by xenophobic and racist groups have become more prominent. Refugees living in many EU states are feeling worried about the safety of their lives and belongings. An even more critical issue is the fact that many citizens of the EU states are becoming targets for racists.
Unfortunately, neither the EU Committee nor the national governments of the EU states have had any success in their fight against xenophobia and racism. Even worse is that they are unable to provide safety for the lives and belongings of people that are being attacked by the racists. This course of events has to worry all European democrats.
The suspicion that there may be racist members in the police forces, which govern the most important mission in the fight against racism and racist terrorist organizations, is worrying for all of us.
A recent scandal uncovered in Germany revealed to us how dire the situation is.
Seda Başay-Yıldız is a very successful German lawyer of Turkish descent. Başay-Yıldız, who represents the Turkish family of a victim of the National Socialist Underground (NSU), a terrorist organization responsible for the murders of eight citizens of Turkish descent, one citizen of Greek descent and one German police officer, received a disgusting and threatening letter. The letter made the following statement; "Dirty Turkish swine! You cannot harm Germany. If you want to live, get out swine! We will have our revenge by cutting down your daughter!" This comes as no surprise to us. In recent years neo-Nazis and racists have been sending such letters to many citizens of Turkish descent in Europe.
However, this time the situation is dangerous. Due to this letter, five police officers from a Frankfurt police station are being held as suspects. The prosecution office is investigating these five police officers on the following suspicions: "Sharing Hitler and swastika pictures on Nazi-chat groups" and "sending a threatening letter to lawyer Başay-Yıldız."
We should also mention that in German media, certain suspicions have been voiced regarding the "sharing of information about the lawyer to neo-Nazis" by police officers. If an investigation is being conducted in Germany into five police officers regarding these allegations, we should take this very seriously. No prosecutor will open an inquiry into police officers without any apparent reason.
At a time when the court decision on the NSU murders was heavily disputed, the very fact that a lawyer who is representing a victim of the NSU is being threatened, is something that should ring alarm bells for a democratic constitutional state.
Not only in Germany but in the EU as a whole, who are we to trust if not the police forces? For this reason, the outcome of this investigation is crucial. There can be no place for racists within the police! Otherwise, success in the fight against racism will be impossible.
Starting with Germany, and across the EU as a whole, we democrats must closely follow this case. We want trust to justice and the police forces. In democracies, a constitutional state's undisrupted operation is the guarantee of the democratic system. We must be very meticulous on this subject. And in Frankfurt, the investigation of the prosecutor's office plays a very crucial role. Its results concern us all. We are anxiously awaiting the outcome of this investigation.