General political mandate

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A general political mandate is understood to be the use of a mandate to express oneself on behalf of a group of people on general political issues within the framework of a shared responsibility for society. In a broader sense, this also includes the issuing of publications and financial support for general political initiatives from the budget of an organization. On the other hand, the purpose of the institution and possibly the political neutrality in the case of compulsory membership can stand.

Germany

In Germany there are compulsory memberships in various corporations under public law, such as chambers of industry and commerce and student bodies at German universities . These are legally limited to making statements or taking measures that are justified in the legal scope of the corporation. For example, statements by a chamber of industry and commerce must have an economic connection and be objectively oriented.

Composed student bodies

The use of a general political mandate that goes beyond the university policy mandate by student bodies at German universities is particularly relevant to the dispute , since the political demand for the introduction of a general policy mandate is discussed here.

Legal position

The legal length is identical to that for other public corporations with compulsory membership. In most federal states that are familiar with this form of interest representation, this form of student interest representation is legally structured with compulsory membership, which is entered into upon enrollment . Saxony-Anhalt and, since 2012, Saxony are an exception . There, under certain conditions, students can declare their withdrawal from the student body after one semester of compulsory membership (e.g. § 24 Paragraph 1 Clause 3 to 5 SächsHSFG).

While different views on university-related issues are to be tolerated, it is questionable to what extent the representatives should accept the mandate, which is enforced for the purpose of self-administration , for political activities going beyond the university.

The first remarks on this topic come from Carl Heinrich Becker , who, when the student bodies were introduced in Prussia in 1920, pointed out the tension between the desired formation of political opinion on the one hand and the public law constitution of the student body on the other: "The organs of the student body are formed for student purposes, They represent the students not as citizens, but as academic citizens and can therefore pass majority resolutions in student matters, but not in political matters. " Admittedly, " no one wants to forbid the student to express his political opinion, but the future board of the student body has no mandate Voters in the political battle of the day. That is what the political associations inside and outside the university are for. " Becker also admitted that there is no " formula that outlines the limits of the political competence of the student body's bodies in a completely satisfactory manner (...). Without trust in the rhythm and the academic awareness of the student body, the whole planned constitution becomes obsolete. "

Nevertheless, the general political mandate remained controversial until the 1950s and 1960s, although the conflicts were mostly within the framework of the university. It was not until 1967 that the first lawsuits between individual students and student bodies were brought up.

Another series of lawsuits from the more recent past from the 1990s onwards were made with the participation of lawyer Heinz-Jürgen Milse and René Schneider, who as a student at the Westphalian Wilhelms University also appeared with a large number of lawsuits against the AStA there . But this is by no means conclusive.

To date, numerous other students have sued the administrative courts (Berlin, Gießen, Hamburg, Marburg, Trier). The majority of the courts are of the opinion that the student bodies and their bodies do not have a general political mandate. However, there are also decisions that, under certain conditions, allow the student bodies to build a bridge between university and general political issues.

Judgments (selection)

  • University of Münster student body (October 2, 1996, OVG Münster)
  • University of Bonn student body (1996, Cologne Administrative Court, 6 L 28/96)
  • Student body University of Wuppertal (1996, VG Düsseldorf, 15 L 781/96)
  • Student Union Freie Universität Berlin (Higher Administrative Court Berlin, January 15, 2004, 8 S 133.03)
  • Student body University of Trier (Higher Administrative Court Koblenz, decision of January 28, 2005 - 2 B 12002/04)
  • Student Union Humboldt University Berlin (Higher Administrative Court Berlin, decision of May 4, 2005 - 8 N 196.02)

Political discussion

While the prohibition of a general political mandate is accepted in other bodies under public law (even if there are questions of interpretation), the demand for a general political mandate has been made among political student groups and in politics since the 1960s.

The opponents of a general political mandate argue with compulsory membership, which includes an obligation to pay the semester fees. Added to this is the weak democratic legitimation of the ASTen due to the low voter turnout, which is typically between 5 and 20 percent of students. The proponents argue with the difficult separation of university and general politics (the promotion of political education , for example, is often one of the tasks of the student bodies). This is overshadowed by the interests: while the left student groups, who demand the general political mandate, have majorities in the vast majority of student parliaments, the liberal and Christian Democratic critics are typically in the opposition.

The RCDS accordingly rejects a general political mandate. The Juso university groups, on the other hand, demand "the fictitious separation of university and general politics no longer be recognized". The demand for a general political mandate can also be found in some SPD programs such as the SPD program for the state elections in Hesse in 2013 .

Student councils

In Baden-Württemberg , student co-responsibility and the state student council do not have their own political mandate. You do not have the right to express your views on general political matters in addition to school policy matters in accordance with Section 63 (3) of the BW School Act .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Political ban for the Chamber of Commerce; in: TAZ from September 20, 2016, online
  2. ↑ Act to change university regulations of October 18, 2012, GVBl 15/2012, p. 562, Article 1, No. 15
  3. ↑ University Act of the State of Saxony-Anhalt , Section 65 Paragraph 1 Clause 3-5
  4. ↑ quoted from Rohwedder, 2005
  5. ↑ cf. Judgment of the BVerfG 1 BvR 1510/99, http://openjur.de/u/347168.html
  6. ^ Jochen Leffers: Political Mandate; in: SPON of November 17, 2004, online
  7. ^ Position of the RCDS ( Memento from September 21, 2016 in the Internet Archive )
  8. ^ Juso university groups
  9. ^ SPD "Government Program for Hesse 2014-2019", p. 21 online

literature

Web links