Berlin, Bremen, Göttingen, June 3, 2026
In the legal proceedings brought by the Berlin bookstore "Zur schwankenden Weltkugel" against the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media (BKM), Minister of State for Culture Wolfram Weimer has informed the Berlin Administrative Court that he will not appeal the court's preliminary injunction. The court's decision, which prohibits the bookstore's owners from being labeled "political extremists," is therefore legally binding.
In a written submission from the BKM to the Administrative Court, it states verbatim:
"The defendant will no longer make statements regarding the plaintiffs that they are 'political extremists' if this occurs as in the interview in Die Zeit on March 18, 2026. This applies provided the facts of the case remain unchanged and regardless of the outcome of the main proceedings."
Furthermore, the Federal Ministry of Culture (BKM) has declared that it will cover the costs of the main proceedings. The costs of the preliminary injunction proceedings must already be borne by the authority itself due to the decision in those proceedings.
Attorney Dr. Jasper Prigge, who handled the case, explains: “The defamation of the bookstore by Minister of State for Culture Weimer was a clear violation of the law. This has now been legally established. Mr. Weimer should apologize and finally rehabilitate the three bookstores. If Mr. Weimer were decent, he would finally pay the award-winning bookstores the bookstore prize, as decided by the independent jury.”
Meanwhile, the legal proceedings initiated by the affected bookstores against the so-called Haber case and their exclusion from the bookstore prize continue. It is not yet clear when the administrative courts in Cologne and Berlin will reach a decision.
For press inquiries:
Attorney Sven Adam (Göttingen) – +49 (0) 551 488 31 69 – kontakt@anwaltskanzlei-adam.de
Attorney Dr. Jasper Prigge (Düsseldorf) – +49 (0) 211 4174 89 90 – kontakt@prigge-recht.de
Attorney Lea Voigt (Bremen) – +49 (0) 421 335 16 78 – voigt@strafdefender-bremen.de
For the bookstores: Bookstore Rote Straße (Göttingen), Golden Shop (Bremen), Bookstore zur schwankenden Weltkugel (Berlin)
