Resignation from the committee

Ferat Koçak, a member of the German Bundestag representing Die Linke, has permanently surrendered his seat on the parliamentary Committee on Internal Affairs. Koçak announced the decision on Wednesday afternoon through a series of nine posts published on the social media platform X. He explained that his departure aims to allow his parliamentary group to proceed with its legislative work without ongoing distractions linked to his person. Koçak had previously suspended his committee duties before deciding to step down entirely from the body.

“I do not want my colleagues and their important parliamentary work to be additionally burdened by attacks on my person.”

Origin of the controversy

The scrutiny surrounding Koçak began following public revelations regarding his communications with members of the Rammo family, a Berlin group linked by authorities to organized crime. Issa Rammo, described as the head of the family, attended a Left Party election celebration held at Festsaal Kreuzberg following the Berlin state election. Shortly after that gathering, his son Firas Rammo published screenshots of private Instagram conversations with Koçak. The messages, dated 17 February, showed Koçak sending greetings to the father and requesting that the son help circulate a video recording of one of his speeches in the Bundestag. In that parliamentary address, Koçak had argued against associating individuals with clan criminality based solely on their family name. Koçak subsequently confirmed that the published messages were genuine.

Political pressure across party lines

The release of the chat logs provoked swift political consequences across Berlin and federal politics. The CDU and CSU parliamentary group demanded Koçak's immediate removal from the committee responsible for domestic security and police oversight. Criticism also emerged from members of the Green Party at a time when exploratory negotiations were underway regarding a potential three-party state coalition between the Social Democrats, Greens, and Die Linke in Berlin. In response to the initial uproar, Die Linke parliamentary co-leader Sören Pellmann announced that Koçak would suspend his committee participation and refrain from public appearances pending a comprehensive review of the matter.

Defense and disclosure of communications

Koçak confirmed the authenticity of the released messages and submitted the complete chat history to German media outlet Die Zeit. According to Koçak, Firas Rammo initially contacted him in response to a public fundraising appeal. Koçak stated that he only realized Issa Rammo's identity during an in-person meeting and subsequently distanced himself from the family. In his public statement on Wednesday, Koçak characterized parts of the public debate as hurtful, discriminatory, and marked by insinuations, while acknowledging that he had been naive and overwhelmed by the situation.

“I am neither criminal nor do I support organized crime.”

Koçak stated that making the full message logs public demonstrates that he neither granted advantages to individuals tied to organized crime nor received benefits from them. Taking personal responsibility for not living up to his own standards in handling the contact, he reiterated his political commitment to ensuring that the Berlin district of Neukölln remains a safe neighborhood for all residents.