Budapest Complex | Anniversary of an injustice

A year ago, Maja T. , a resident of Jena, was extradited from Dresden Prison to Budapest via Austria, despite ongoing expedited proceedings before the Federal Constitutional Court. She is currently on trial there on charges of participating in acts of violence against actual or suspected right-wing extremists in February 2023 and of being jointly responsible for serious bodily harm.

According to her father, the action resembled a kidnapping. At a demonstration in Jena on Saturday, which commemorated the anniversary of Maja T.'s extradition and demanded her return, he described her experience: She was woken up in the middle of the night by judicial officers and State Criminal Police Office employees, handcuffed, an opaque bag was pulled over her head, and a padded helmet was placed on her head. T. reportedly suffered from shortness of breath during the transport. Painful restraints were used, and she was denied any opportunity to drink any fluids.

Maja T's father and Thuringian Left Party MP Katharina König-Preuss speak of a targeted, long-planned operation. König-Preuss doubted that a helicopter deployment with "several hundred troops" would be possible spontaneously. "This was a political decision that, if you're honest and look at the structures and logic, had been planned for a long time," said König-Preuss.

The extradition was so well coordinated and swift that there was barely enough time for a legal response. The Federal Constitutional Court prohibited the extradition on the morning of June 28 – too late: Maja was already in Hungary. There were no consequences for the authorities. In February 2025, Karlsruhe subsequently declared the extradition retroactively illegal.

Maja T. continues her hunger strike

At the opening rally in Jena, representatives of the Green Party and the Young Socialists (Jusos) called for Maja's return. A Green Party spokesperson said: "The conditions in Hungary are unacceptable. The federal government must do everything possible to correct this mistake."

Maja T. remains in pre-trial detention in Hungary and has currently been on hunger strike for almost four weeks. The non-binary anti-fascist has refused food since June 5. The protest is directed against continued solitary confinement and what many consider to be a politically motivated trial. According to the "Free Maja" solidarity committee, T. has already lost twelve kilos.

Protest march to Berlin

After the demonstration in Jena, Maja T.'s father launched a protest march to Berlin under the motto "On Foot for Justice." In a statement, he asked: "How can it be that the Federal Constitutional Court has found a violation of fundamental rights, but the federal government has barely reacted?"

He carries a petition with around 100,000 signatures. It demands a meeting and clear measures for her repatriation. The father told "nd": "Something must finally be done now. Mr. Wadephul, bring Maja back to Germany."

Although there have been signals from the Foreign Office, after a year of solitary confinement, progress has been marginal. "Solitary confinement is torture. The trial is also a farce. The verdict and sentence appear to be finalized," says the "On Foot for Justice" initiative.

Solidarity visit to Budapest

On Saturday, Bundestag member Katrin Göring-Eckardt and EU representative Daniel Freund (both Green Party) visited Maja T. in prison – for the first time without a partition. Göring-Eckardt said in a video on X: "We want Maja to receive a due process and be extradited to Germany." Carola Rackete and Martin Schirdewan, EU representatives for the Left Party, had also previously visited Maja T. The visits are a sign of growing support from the opposition. The Left Party's state and federal branches have long been calling for her return, and Left Party parliamentary group leader Heidi Reichinnek mentioned the case in the Bundestag.

While the Green Party remained reserved for a long time in the traffic light coalition, the party and youth organizations are now openly demanding T's return and a due process. The SPD has so far remained silent – ​​unlike its youth organization, the Jusos.