New edition planned
A new edition has been planned for years. The Munich Institute of Contemporary History (IfZ) is planning to publish an annotated version. It is to consist of two volumes and comprise around 2,000 pages.
Only” 780 pages are taken from the original by Adolf Hitler. The majority of the content therefore consists of academic commentary.
Financial support from the government?
The project was to be supported by the Bavarian state government (rights holder) with €500,000.
However, after discussions with Holocaust survivors in Israel, she withdrew her offer. Despite the scholarly background of the “Mein Kampf” edition, a new publication would be disrespectful to the victims. Ludwig Spaenle, Bavaria’s Minister of State for Education, Culture, Science and the Arts, is likely to have an interest in the project from a purely historical/academic perspective. Nevertheless, he is of the opinion that this document should not be published in any form (not even academically) out of respect for the suffering of the victims.
“Anti-Hitler writing”
However, the IfZ’s intention is contrary to this. After all, it is not a direct postscript, but rather an “anti-Hitler publication”.
A detailed and in-depth scientific analysis of the book “Mein Kampf” is carried out. The texts are examined in great detail, untruths and contradictions are filtered out and processed. This is one of the reasons for the long writing time. Because “the deeper you go into it, the deeper the abysses are,” said team leader Christian Hartmann.
Ban on distribution to remain in place
The Free State of Bavaria still holds the rights to the book until the end of 2015. At the moment, Bavaria is still responsible for releasing it for publication. After that, the copyright will expire.
In 2014, a measure was already taken to make the release of “Mein Kampf” more difficult. Even after the copyright has expired, it is forbidden to sell the inflammatory text in its original form. However, this does not directly include the scientifically processed republication.
Under a strict interpretation, publication without punishment may be possible if the comments are in the foreground and can be distinguished from the content.
It now remains to be seen how the project develops and whether a publication can be pushed through. We will find out more at the end of 2015/beginning of 2016.