“They have now achieved that with their raid,” says the demonstrator, looking around with satisfaction. Hundreds of people gathered on Munich’s Marienplatz on Thursday evening to express their solidarity with the “last generation” climate protectors who are being pursued by Bavarian security authorities on charges of possibly being a criminal organization. Flags and symbols of various groups of the climate movement can be seen in downtown Munich, alongside those of the last generation, such as those of “Extinction Rebellion” or the “Parents for Future”.
Harald Lesch: “Red line crossed”
The route of the initially unregistered demonstration train is only negotiated in front of the Munich City Hall with the operational management of the around 100 Munich police officers who are ready. When the protesters finally set off, there were 600 people, including many young people, but also older people from Munich.
He is there “because a red line has now been crossed,” says television professor Harald Lesch into a camera. “You can’t be treated like criminals.” You don’t always have to agree to the actions of the last generation, some things also qualify as coercion, but that “by no means justifies any raids”.
The last generation of Munich activists were also affected by the house searches on Wednesday. A spokeswoman for the group wrote in the announcement of the protest march that it was a “politically motivated action to intimidate people and to hinder resistance to the government’s continued actions”. Most of the demonstrators, who also passed the Bavarian State Chancellery and the Ministry of the Interior on Odeonsplatz during their silent protest march, share this view.
Many of the demonstrators assume that the raid on the climate protection activists was politically motivated.
(Photo: Stephan Rumpf)
After the raids on activists of the last generation, the grandmas against the right also ask who is breaking the law here.
(Photo: Stephan Rumpf)
They are on the move without shouting slogans, as they have agreed with the police. But posters read: “Stop the criminalization of the climate movement”, “No abuse of justice” or “Solidarity instead of repression”. No blocking, no sticking, no confrontation with the emergency services: the protesters keep these promises. At the end they come together at the Odeonsplatz for a final rally.
Further protest action on Wednesday evening
Another solidarity demonstration, which took place on Wednesday evening at the Munich Friedensengel, also passed without incident. According to the Munich police, almost 100 people protested peacefully a few hours after the raid and then passed the Bavarian state parliament to Max-Weber-Platz.