Aygül Kilic was a little-known candidate for the Free Democrats until her electoral poster ignited an online controversy.
One of Kilic’s party colleagues says those vilifying her for wearing a hijab should “go to hell.”
Germany’s business friendly Free Democratic Party (FDP) has defended one of its hijab-wearing Muslim candidates after her electoral poster sparked hostile reactions on social media.
Aygül Kilic, a candidate for a local election in the northern German city of Neumünster, posted a photo of the poster on her personal Facebook account on March 25.
Critical comments and posts quickly spread on Facebook and Twitter, with many people questioning how the FDP could condone a candidate that wore an allegedly oppressive and illiberal form of Islamic clothing.
He local FDP party in Neumünster released a statement defending Kilic against what it said were “hateful” and “right-wing” comments.
“The Free Democrats in Neumünster have been subject to strong criticism and hateful comments that clearly have right-wing origins,” the party said.
“The people who are progressive and liberal are those who don’t recommend or dictate to people from other cultures, religions or nationalities what to wear,” it added.
Source: DW
