Republication in Germany after 2015
On 3 February 2010, the Institute of Contemporary History (IfZ) in Munich announced plans to republish an annotated version of the text, for educational purposes in schools and universities, in 2015, when the copyright currently held by the Bavarian state government expires (2016). This would be the book's first publication in Germany since 1945. A group of German historians argued that a republication was necessary to get an authoritative annotated edition by the time the copyright runs out, which will open the way for neo-Nazi groups to publish their own versions. "Once Bavaria's copyright expires, there is the danger of charlatans and neo-Nazis appropriating this infamous book for themselves," Wolfgang Heubisch said. The Bavarian government opposed the plan, citing respect for victims of the Holocaust. The Bavarian Finance Ministry said that permits for reprints would not be issued, at home or abroad. This would also apply to a new annotated edition. The republished book might be banned as Nazi propaganda. Even after expiration of the copyright, the Bavarian government emphasised that "the dissemination of Nazi ideologies will remain prohibited in Germany and is punishable under the penal code".[40][41][42][43][44]
On 12 December 2013 the Bavarian government cancelled its financial support for an annotated edition. The Institute of Contemporary History (IfZ) in Munich, which is preparing the translation, announced that it intended to proceed with publication.[45]
The German re-release of "Mein Kampf" is scheduled for 2016. This edition is heavily annotated by researchers at Munich's Institute of Contemporary History.[46]
Through reading about this late last year on Wikipedia, I became aware of the fact that Mein Kampf was eligible for republication in Germany after 2015. I was recently surprised, though, to have found mainstream media like CBS News had picked up on this, and why they're reporting on it so well in advance. I'm just wondering if they'll be frequenting this in the news in the coming months or if we'll never hear about it again - likely the former.
Anyhow, I first spotted this on the website of zerohedge(dot)com who was recycling this news story.
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-02-25/after-75-years-hitlers-mein-kampf-will-be-re-printed-germany
After 75 Years, Hitler's "Mein Kampf" Will Be Re-Printed In Germany
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 02/25/2015 19:00 -0500
Times, they are a'changing. For the first time in 75 years, according to multiple reports, CBS News reports, a new edition of Adolf Hitler's "Mein Kampf" will be bound for sale in bookstores in Germany. While the book, long known as "the Nazi bible," is widely available in the U.S. and much of the English-speaking world, it was for years banned from being reprinted in Germany over fears it would reignite the passions that plunged the country into World War II. Still, amid rising anti-semitism across Europe and a surge in nationalism, the timing is odd and as the head of Munich's Jewish community exclaimed, "this book is most evil."
As CBS News reports, researchers are on track to finish roughly 4,000 annotations and historical notes to accompany a new German-language edition of Hitler’s manifesto, “Mein Kampf,” to be published in January 2016...
The book has long been known as "the Nazi bible," and was for years banned from being reprinted in Germany over fears it would reignite the passions that plunged the country into World War II.
Times change, however, and it now appears a new edition of Adolf Hitler's "Mein Kampf" will be bound for sale in bookstores in Germany for the first time in 75 years, according to multiple reports.
The state of Bavaria has owned the German copyright to the book and has legally blocked attempts to print it, reports The Washington Post. In December, however, the copyright expires.
...
Hitler wrote the book - its English translation is "My Struggle" - after he was jailed in the aftermath of the failed Beer Hall Putsch in 1923. After the Nazis rose to power in the 1930s, the book became a best-seller that made Hitler rich. Copies of it were given free to every German soldier and newlywed couple, bolstering circulation that reached around 10 million copies.
Germany is one of the few countries to ban the reprinting of the book, while also tightly regulating its sale. "Mein Kampf" is widely available in the U.S. and much of the English-speaking world, as well as some of the Bundesrepublik's neighbors.
Regardless, many are wary of letting Germans freely find copies of the book again, especially amid the growing anti-Semitism they are struggling to tamp down.
"This book is most evil; it is the worst anti-Semitic pamphlet and a guidebook for the Holocaust," Charlotte Knobloch, head of the Jewish community in Munich, told Time magazine.
* * *
The push from historians to release the book in a controlled way has been underway for some time. Many have argued that by not allowing its free release, it has given rise to lots of myths about the rambling and highly subjective tome from the Nazi leader.
...and here's another article on the subject from a different "news" website with which I'm unfamiliar.
http://www.inquisitr.com/1876548/mein-kampf-to-be-reprinted-in-germany-after-75-years/
Mein Kampf, Adolf Hitler’s magnum opus and the notorious blueprint for his regime, will be republished in Germany for the first time in 75 years.
The book, which was written by Hitler during his post-WWI imprisonment in 1923, is expected to hit bookstores across Germany in 2016. The effort to republish Mein Kampf in Germany was an initiative of the Institute for Contemporary History.
Aside from reprinting the original book, the Munich-based organization will also provide commentary and criticism on the content of Mein Kampf, bumping the original word count of the book from 700 words to 2000 words, according to the New York Times.
The decision to provide commentary on the Mein Kampf follows a previous ruling recently agreed upon by justice ministers from the country’s 16 states, which disallows the republication of the book without accompanying commentary.
For the past decades, the government of the state of Bavaria has held legal rights over the contents of Mein Kampf, allowing them to prevent further reprints of Hitler’s infamous book inside the country. However, the copyright on the book expires December this year, allowing publishers to arrange for its re-release.
Mein Kampf‘s intriguing comeback has unsurprisingly received negative reaction from citizens and scholars alike. One librarian historian for the Bavarian State Library, Florian Sepp, describes the book as “too dangerous for the general public.” Another scholar, Levi Salomon of the Jewish Forum for Democracy and Against Anti-Semitism in Berlin, told the Washington Post,“I am absolutely against the publication of ‘Mein Kampf,’ even with annotations. Can you annotate the Devil? Can you annotate a person like Hitler? This book is outside of human logic.”
Often described as the “Nazi Bible”, Mein Kampf — or “My Struggle” in English — outlines Adolf Hitler’s anti-Semitic ideology and his plans of implementing them in Germany. During the dictator’s days in power, the book was given free to every newly wed couple and to every German soldier fighting on the front lines.
Even before the announcement of Mein Kampf’s reprinting in Germany, the book had already received an unusual surge in popularity in the past few years. Last year, Inquisitr reported that the book was topping E-book charts of many online stores including iTunes and Amazon. In November, a copy of Mein Kampf with the fuhrer’s autograph sold for a whopping $30,000.
While most readers are purchasing it for historical or educational purposes only — while some are just intrigued by the novelty of owning a notoriously misguided book — many remain uneasy of the sudden boost in demand for the Mein Kampf. Critics blame the ban on reprinting Mein Kampf – which supplements the taboo that comes with reading or owning the book — for its recently revived popularity.
