In view of increasing violence against politicians, Federal Interior Minister Faeser wants to quickly discuss protective measures with her colleagues from the federal states. Demos are planned for the evening in Berlin and Dresden.
After the brutal attack on an SPD politician in Dresden, the federal and state interior ministers are expected to discuss protective measures very soon. Again Daily Mirror Citing government circles, Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser has suggested a special conference next week. The SPD politician made a corresponding request to the current chairman of the Conference of Interior Ministers, Brandenburg’s department head Michael Stübgen (CDU).
On Saturday, Faeser had already declared it urgent to convene a conference quickly. “The constitutional state must and will respond to this with tough action and further protective measures for the democratic forces in our country,” she said. The attack represented “a new dimension of anti-democratic violence.”
SPD candidate beaten up
The Saxon SPD’s leading candidate for the European elections, Matthias Ecke, was beaten up on Friday evening while hanging up election posters in Dresden. The 41-year-old MEP has been in hospital ever since and had to undergo surgery. Shortly before, according to police, the same group had allegedly attacked and injured a Green Party campaign worker nearby.
One of the young men has now reported to the police. The 17-year-old stated that he had knocked Ecke down, as the Saxon State Criminal Police Office (LKA) announced. He had therefore not previously appeared to the police. The other as yet unknown suspects are still being investigated, it said.
According to witnesses, the four young men between the ages of 17 and 20 were dressed in dark clothing, a police spokesman had previously said. A witness assigned her to the right-wing spectrum. The investigation would show whether that was true. According to the Saxon Interior Ministry, the State Criminal Police Office is now investigating.
Politicians express their horror
The attack sparked nationwide outrage. “This outbreak of violence is a warning,” said Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier on Saturday. He appealed to everyone to conduct the political debate peacefully and with respect and called on supporters of liberal democracy to stand together across party lines against attacks.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) said that democracy is threatened by something like this, “and that’s why shrugging off acceptance is never an option.” Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck (Greens) explained: “They are the disgusting and inexcusable result of a brutalization of language, debate and disinhibition in the so-called social media.” Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) warned that “the disinhibition of political debate affects us all.” Anyone could be next. “That’s why we are all called upon to oppose the escalation.”
Attacks are increasing
The incidents in Dresden are part of a nationwide series of attacks on party members before the local and European elections on June 9th. Only on Thursday evening, after a Green Party event in Essen, Bundestag member Kai Gehring and his party colleague Rolf Fliß said they were attacked and Fliß was beaten.
The Green Bundestag Vice President Katrin-Göring-Eckardt was aggressively harassed and prevented from leaving after an event in eastern Brandenburg a week ago. According to police, a member of the AfD state parliament was beaten at an information stand in Nordhorn, Lower Saxony, on Saturday morning.
Thuringia’s Interior Minister Georg Maier (SPD) speculated Editorial network Germany, one must assume that these are planned acts “that are not carried out spontaneously, but rather deliberately. This is a new level of escalation that has the declared aim of intimidation.” One must also expect imitation acts.
According to a response from the federal government to an AfD request Green Party politicians were particularly affected: according to preliminary figures, 1,219 cases were recorded in 2023. This is a significant increase; in 2022 there were still 575 offenses. AfD politicians were also frequently physically attacked. The preliminary statistics record 478 cases. The SPD was hit third most often with 420 crimes. According to government figures, 10,537 crimes were reported for all parties together from 2019 to 2023.
Demonstrations planned in Dresden and Berlin
Two alliances called for demonstrations on Sunday evening under the motto “Violence has no place in our democracy!” in Berlin and Dresden. In Berlin there will be a protest in front of the Brandenburg Gate from 6 p.m., in Dresden from 5 p.m. at Pohlandplatz, as stated in the Instagram posts of the Internet portal “Together Against the Right” and the alliance “We are the Firewall Dresden”. The alliances had already called for demonstrations against the right in February.
The call for demonstrations states that we want to take a stand together as a democratic civil society. “No one should have to fear for their safety because they are politically involved or active in a party,” it said. “We will not allow violence to destroy this democracy.”