Liberal democratic basic order

The liberal democratic basic order (German: freiheitliche demokratische Grundordnung, informal abbreviation fdGO or FDGO) is a fundamental term in German constitutional law. It determines the unalienable, invariable core structure of the German commonwealth. As such, it is the core substance of the German constitution. Building upon more general definitions of liberal democracy, the term has a specific legal meaning in Germany and is part of the German (originally West German) system of a Streitbare Demokratie ("fortified democracy") that bans attempts to dismantle the liberal democratic basic order by what German authorities refer to as "enemies of the Constitution" or "extremists". In practice, the concept has been used to target various far-right, far-left and other extremist groups. A historical example is the ideological struggle against Soviet-controlled East Germany ("GDR") during the Cold War, when West Germany's commitment to defending democracy was closely linked with its opposition to Soviet and East German authoritarian communism. Ever since the German reunification, the concept has been used to counter the resurgence of far-right extremism. Theoretically the concept is associated with anti-totalitarianism and with the scholarly field of democracy and extremism research in Germany. While often relying upon scholars in this field, the classification of extremist organisations is ultimately an administrative decision made by the Federal Office ("BfV") or State Offices for the Protection of the Constitution ("LfV"). Associations that threaten the liberal democratic basic order may be banned by the minister of the interior at federal or state level (decision subject to review by administrative courts). Anti-constitutional political parties may only be dissolved by the Federal Constitutional Court.