British artist faces criminal investigation in Germany over social media posts

Hamja Ahsan, a London-based conceptual artist, writer, curator and activist, is facing charges by German authorities over social media posts in which he allegedly insulted two German politicians, a violation under German law. Some of the posts were written while he was on British soil.

“I no longer take my constitutional and civil rights for granted,” says Ahsan The art newspaper.

Ahsan’s problems began in 2022 when he participated as an artist in Documenta 15. In August of the same year, he posted a Guardian On Facebook, he published a story about Germany’s increased defense spending, in which he called German Chancellor Olaf Scholz “a neoliberal fascist pig.” He also posted a telegraph Story about a press conference by Boris Johnson and Scholz with the headline “Two Pigs”.

A few days later, when Ahsan was in Germany for Documenta 15, Stefan Naas, a German politician from the Freedom Democratic Party (FDP), shared a screenshot of Ahsan’s Facebook post on his X-Account (formerly Twitter), where he criticized him, calling him “unbearable” and tagging the artist.

In response to Naas’ post, Ahsan tweeted several times. In one tweet, he accused Naas of trying to prevent his event, which was attended by two Israeli Jews, and called him a “lackey of the neoliberal apartheid regime.” In the following days, several German publications, including Bildpublished stories branding Ahsan a “hate artist” and expressing outrage over his “insults” against Scholz.

Ahsan, who has worked on projects at Tate Modern and Tate Liverpool, remembers being inundated with hate and threats online so great he feared for his safety. “There were calls to deport me, to kill me, to burn my art,” he says, pointing out that none of the people who targeted him have been held accountable.

Fearing physical attacks, the artist informed Documenta on August 16 that he wanted to leave Germany immediately, canceled his remaining events, and asked for an escort to the airport for his protection. His posts were also forwarded to Facebook and Twitter, which reactivated them after reviewing the content.

Back home in London, he received documents from the Kassel public prosecutor’s office in December 2022. The document, dated October 31, states that he had “insulted” the two politicians, knowing full well that the comments “would hinder the politician’s political career, and that was exactly what you intended.”

He was told that if convicted, he could face a fine of around 12,000 euros; if he fails to pay the fine, he could be sentenced to prison. He also has to pay his own legal fees, which he financed through crowdfunding. “Since my first year of university, it has been my dream to be part of Documenta. That dream turned into a long-running nightmare that continues to this day,” says Ahsan.

“I could not imagine that a German artist who criticises (former British Prime Minister) Boris Johnson, who lives in Germany, would be excluded from the Tate Modern or the Liverpool Biennial or even prosecuted,” says Ahsan.

Support for BDS

Ahsan says he was targeted because of his long-standing support for Palestine and the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, which Naas’ post and German publications reference. In 2019, German parliamentarians voted to classify BDS as anti-Semitic. In the UK, a bill seen by some as a restriction on freedom of speech that would ban public bodies from boycotting foreign countries – the Economic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) Bill 2022-23 – was approved by the House of Commons. The bill was still at committee stage in the House of Lords when the general election was called and Parliament was adjourned until a new government is elected in July.

Ahsan has turned to the Artists’ Union of England (AUE) for support. “It is clear to us as a union that our member is being subjected to an Islamophobic campaign, which is part of a wider effort to suppress criticism of German complicity in the actions of the Israeli state,” the AUE board explains. The art newspaper in a statement.

“The attempt to prosecute him for his comments about German politicians on social media seems an absurd and dangerous exaggeration.” The AUE board says many of its members are so concerned about the level of censorship and criminalization in Germany that they have joined the “Strike Germany” campaign..

“At a time when artists are facing censorship and losing work for expressing their support for Palestine, it is vital that we act together to make artists’ unions stronger. We must increase our membership and mobilize so that we can fight more effectively for our artistic freedom to speak, work and act in solidarity,” explains the AUE board.

The AUE board says it supports Ahsan and artists around the world who face consequences for expressing international solidarity. “The Artists Union England stands with our members against anti-Semitism, Islamophobia and all forms of racism.”

The British Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office and the German Embassy in the United Kingdom were asked for comment.