Scandal surrounding judge: Wikipedia entry changed before nomination!

Scandal surrounding judge: Wikipedia entry changed before nomination!

The nomination of Frauke Brosius-Gersdorf as judge at the Federal Constitutional Court is currently causing a lot of discussion in politics and beyond. Shortly before the official announcement on June 30, 2023, the renowned legal scholar Ekkehart Reimer changed her Wikipedia entry, using his real name. This happened during a time when their views and positions were increasingly becoming the focus of public discussion. The nomination was quickly viewed as explosive, especially after growing resistance within the CDU/CSU parliamentary group, which led to her election being canceled in the Bundestag. This background is highlighted in an article by World.

Reimer, who teaches at the University of Heidelberg, justified his changes with the central role that Brosius-Gersdorf's position on abortion plays in the current political and scientific discussion. The additions were linked to her activities in a commission on reproductive self-determination and reproductive medicine. Before editing, the information in the Wikipedia entry was primarily biographical in nature and did not contain any significant discussion of their professional positions. Also reported t online, that Reimer specifically highlighted her view on abortion after the entry had previously been rather inaccurate.

Public reactions and controversies

With the publication of her nomination on June 30, Brosius-Gersdorf's views found herself in the crosshairs of critical reporting and attacks from right-wing platforms. They accused her of taking constitutionally questionable positions, particularly with regard to the deadline regulations for abortion. In a commission report, Brosius-Gersdorf emphasized that the guarantee of human dignity only applies from birth, which she vehemently rejected in a ZDF talk show and rejected allegations that she wanted to legalize abortion up to birth. She also pointed out that her opinions were scientifically based and located in the middle of society, but were often presented in a distorted manner. Reported about this Daily Mirror.

The debate over Brosius-Gersdorf's nomination and the edited Wikipedia entry shows how deeply personal views are intertwined with political reality. Her support of the legislature's right to regulate abortions in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy is causing waves not only among supporters but also among critics. Reimer himself expressed reservations about the candidacy by describing Brosius-Gersdorf as an activist who was striving for a reinterpretation of the Basic Law. He drew comparisons to the US ruling “Roe v. Wade”, which regulates access to abortion in the USA.

The events surrounding Brosius-Gersdorf's nomination shed light on the complexity of the current debates surrounding constitutional law and social values ​​in Germany. It remains to be seen how the discussion will develop further and what influence it could have on the case law at the Federal Constitutional Court.