Bad Arolsen (epd). After allegations of bullying and abuse of power against the management of the NS Documentation Center Arolsen Archives, the lawyer Daniel Vogel expresses doubts about the willingness of those responsible to investigate. He still hopes that consequences will be drawn from the reports collected by 25 active or former employees, he told the Evangelical Press Service (epd). But he also knows that Director Floriane Azoulay has numerous advocates in the institution’s supervisory body, the so-called International Committee. At the same time, he is also examining criminal charges in some particularly drastic cases.
Vogel emphasized that the allegations were not directed against the internationally renowned NS Document Center, but exclusively against Azoulay and her deputy Steffen B. On Wednesday, the “Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland (RND)” first reported on a dossier that Vogel had already put together in March for Minister of State for Culture Claudia Roth (Greens), which is now also available to the epd.
It describes arbitrariness, humiliation and rows of dismissals of employees. According to employees, there has been a “toxic working atmosphere” and a “culture of fear” in the facility almost since Azoulay took office in 2016.
The press spokeswoman for the Arolsen Archives, Anke Münster, confirmed to the epd that an external investigation would have to be led by a Berlin law firm. The Arolsen Archives take the anonymous allegations very seriously, said Münster. However, management is advised not to comment on the allegations until the ongoing investigation is complete.
The International Committee, made up of representatives from eleven countries, commissioned the study. “Until June 5, 2023, employees can express themselves in this context,” said the spokeswoman.
Members of the Bundestag from the Union and SPD called for consequences after the allegations became known. It is of the utmost importance that such state-supported cultural institutions comply with clear guidelines for preventing and combating abuse of power, said the cultural policy spokesman for the SPD parliamentary group, Helge Lindh, the RND. In addition, there is a need for a long-term trust center as an “early warning system for archive employees”.
The CDU cultural politician Christiane Schenderlein called for the director’s employment to be suspended with immediate effect until the allegations were cleared up: “In view of the drama described, the investigation that has been initiated must also deliver results after two months. The state of uncertainty is untenable.”