# German far-right lawmaker under scrutiny over Belarus prison labor claims
A Politico report on 2024-09-24 says Jörg Dornau, a member of Germany’s far-right Alternative for Germany party and a lawmaker in Saxony, has used political prisoners as labor on an onion plantation in Belarus. The story places his business dealings under renewed scrutiny and raises fresh questions about how his agricultural company operated in a country known for political repression.
According to Politico, the report originated with the Belarusian outlet Reform.news, which said Dornau had struck a deal with a local detention facility to employ people convicted of political offenses at OOO Zybulka-Bel. One laborer told the outlet he was paid about €5 per day after being detained for liking a social media post, and described harsh working conditions, including long hours, no food or water until the end of the day and a freezing basement shelter.
Because the allegation comes through a Belarusian outlet and is relayed by Politico, the article must be careful not to overstate what is independently verified in the packet. The firm reported denial or nonresponse from Dornau himself; Politico said he did not respond to its requests for comment. A Saxony AfD spokesperson told the publication that the presumption of innocence applies until legal clarification.
Still, the report contains several concrete elements. Dornau has represented the AfD in the Saxony parliament since 2019. He was fined €20,862 by the parliament the previous month for failing to disclose his involvement in Zybulka-Bel. The company was registered in Belarus in October 2020, during a period of mass protests against Lukashenko’s rule.
The political context is crucial. Belarus has locked up large numbers of dissidents since the 2020 election widely dismissed as fraudulent, and the report says there were more than 1,300 political prisoners in the country at the time. That makes any arrangement involving detainee labor politically explosive, even if the laborer quoted in the report said the work was not forced and the earnings were supposed to go toward the maintenance of the detention center.
The article should avoid turning allegation into verdict. But it can fairly say that the report adds a serious layer to Dornau’s already controversial Belarus business ties. Politico said the laborer claimed Dornau visited the onion plantation at least once and that he matched the description given by the detainee. It also said the farm used prisoners convicted of political infractions, which is why the case has drawn attention far beyond Saxony.
For the AfD, the story is uncomfortable because it places one of its lawmakers in proximity to a system of repression that European governments have repeatedly condemned. For readers, the key point is that a business relationship, a detention system and a far-right politician have converged in a way that demands scrutiny. The facts in the packet stop short of legal proof, but they are enough to show why the allegation is politically toxic.
