The Free Voters in the state parliament are clearly on the side of farmers in their fight against cuts – but are also emphatically calling for peaceful protests. “It is completely legitimate for farmers to demonstrate for their more than legitimate concerns,” said parliamentary group leader Florian Streibl to the German Press Agency before the winter meeting in Lindau that started on Wednesday. In fact, the traffic light government is putting a completely excessive burden on farmers. Streibl also emphasized: “But there are also limits. If the traffic light is hung on posters on the gallows – that’s not possible. Even the protest, no matter how justified it may be, must adhere to law and order.”
There will also be a resolution on the topic at the three-day meeting of MPs; including a clear distancing from violent fantasies that right-wing radicals and “lateral thinkers” wanted to carry into the farmers’ protests. Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann (CSU) and the German Police Union had warned against this before the start of the week of action based on relevant information. Ultimately, in contrast to some other federal states, in the Free State, according to current knowledge, only a few extremists mingled with the large crowd of farmers, and symbols glorifying violence such as gallows were also only seen sporadically.
However, FW boss and Economics Minister Hubert Aiwanger recently brushed off all fears and thereby cast doubt on official warnings. It was a trick, so to speak, he said at the FW Epiphany meeting in Bad Füssing, Lower Bavaria, to “discuss infiltration” – probably in the hope that people would stay at home and the debates would “go to sleep”. After a demonstration against Green Vice-Chancellor Robert Habeck in Schleswig-Holstein that was perceived as threatening, Aiwanger refuses to condemn violence. Unlike almost all of German politics, including Prime Minister Markus Söder (CSU). There are different videos about the incident on the Internet, Aiwanger explained on Tuesday evening on the ARD program “Maischberger”. On the talk show, however, he describes gallows at demos as “tasteless”.
In FW faction circles it was said on Wednesday that they were now making up for what Aiwanger had unfortunately missed. With all due respect for Aiwanger’s efforts at the demos and the possible benefits for the party, one must “uphold the culture of demonstration” and “show what is not possible.” The draft resolution states: “We are firmly convinced that these measures place a disproportionate burden on farmers in Germany and threaten their existence.” However, one distances oneself “very clearly from right-wing free riders who exploit the distress and legitimate concerns of farmers for their own goals in order to live out their obscure subversive fantasies and anti-democratic attitudes.” At the same time, we reject blanket prejudgments of farmers. The topic of the retreat will also be about protecting Jewish life in Bavaria and “more innovation-friendliness” in the business location. The FW gained 4.2 percent in the election and the group has many new members. The meeting also served as “team building,” it was said, and to get to know each other.