Former mayor of Berlin
“Attack on democracy”: Politicians and police condemn attack on Giffey
Watch the video: Man attacks Franziska Giffey – SPD leader calls for “quick punishment”.
Video source: RTL
After the recent attack on Berlin Senator Franziska Giffey, calls for harsher punishments for the perpetrators are growing. The reactions to the attack at a glance.
After becoming the latest victim in a series of attacks on politicians, Berlin’s Economics Senator Franziska Giffey (SPD) will return to work on Wednesday. She spoke out for the first time in the morning on Instagram. “We live in a free and democratic country in which everyone is allowed and able to express their opinions freely,” said the SPD politician. “And yet there is a clear limit. And that is violence against people who hold a different view, for whatever reasons, in whatever form.” There is no justification for these attacks. “They are a border crossing that we as a society must resolutely oppose,” said Giffey.
The senator was attacked from behind on Tuesday afternoon in a library in the Rudow district with a bag that had hard contents in it, as the Berlin police announced on Wednesday night. The former Governing Mayor of Berlin and former Federal Minister for Family Affairs was hit in the head and neck, and the suspect then walked away.
The Berlin police said Giffey “briefly went to a hospital for outpatient treatment of the headache and neck pain.” She initially did not provide any information about the suspect. According to the information, the Police State Security began investigations in coordination with the public prosecutor’s office.
Horrified reactions from politicians
Politicians from the capital reacted with horror to the latest attack. Berlin’s governing mayor Kai Wegner (CDU) condemned the attack “in the strongest possible terms”. Anyone who attacks politicians is “attacking our democracy,” he explained on the online service Wegner announced that he would discuss the consequences in the Berlin Senate – and “also about harsher punishments for attacks on politicians.”
Berlin’s Interior Senator Iris Spranger (SPD) also condemned on
Brandenburg’s Interior Minister Michael Stübgen found similarly clear words. “Unfortunately, we have had this spiral for years, and this year we are dealing with a violent spiral of physical attacks on politicians, which worries me extremely,” said the CDU politician, who currently chairs the Conference of Interior Ministers, on RBB24 Inforadio . He also sees brutalization towards fire and rescue services, for example, which “has also increased massively in recent years”. Therefore, the criminal law protection of charitable activities should be better expanded.
Police union condemns “sneaky attack” on Giffey
The GdP police union has condemned the attack on Berlin’s Economics Senator Franziska Giffey as a “sneaky attack”. “The attacks on elected officials have increased in recent years, hate comments are made on social media and verbal violence creates a breeding ground for physical violence,” said state leader Stephan Weh in a statement on Wednesday.
“Instead of exchanging opinions and confronting arguments, today people are rushing and hitting.” This seems to be normal now, but it shouldn’t be. “Politicians, police officers, firefighters and volunteers are in the spotlight because they themselves put a lot of effort into helping others.” It is time for sustainable measures to be taken to protect them. “We need better criminal protection for officials and elected officials as well as strengthening the police and judiciary in terms of personnel and technology so that they do not become targets.”
Another attack on a Green Party politician in Saxony
According to the police, there was also an attack on a politician in Saxony. In Dresden, a Green Party politician was threatened and spat on, officials said on Tuesday evening. The 47-year-old hung up election posters while she was accompanied. A man approached her, pushed her aside and tore down two posters, insulting and threatening those present. A woman came along and spat on the politician. Both suspects were arrested near the crime scene, according to police.
The police initially did not provide any information about which politician it was. Officials said she was accompanied by a campaign team and a film crew. According to the information, the two suspected perpetrators are a 34-year-old and a 24-year-old. “The 34-year-old German is now being investigated for bodily harm, threats, insults and damage to property and the 24-year-old German is being investigated for bodily harm,” the police continued.
Last Friday in Dresden, the Saxon SPD MEP Matthias Ecke was knocked down and seriously injured. The group responsible is said to have previously attacked a 28-year-old who was putting up election posters for the Greens. The attack caused outrage nationwide, but at the same time triggered a wave of solidarity. After the attack on Ecke, the federal and state interior ministers spoke out in favor of a quick response from the judiciary and the consideration of tightening criminal laws.