Because they already felt like they were already standing in the rain in view of the recent price increases, the around 200 demonstrators on Saturday afternoon at Munich’s Rotkreuzplatz were not affected by heavy rain showers. In addition, the motto of the meeting “Now it’s done!” of a broad alliance of church, trade union and party social politicians as multi-compatible: suited the current politics and the current demo weather. The concentrated resentment is primarily aimed at the ever-increasing gap between rich and poor, as the subtitle of the event reveals: “We don’t freeze for your profits! – Take to the streets in solidarity. Enough is enough!”
Instead of investing 100 billion euros in armaments, the state should rather spend that money “for social security and climate protection,” demanded Stefan Jagel (Die Linke), for example, who chairs the Munich City Council of the Die Linke/Die Party parliamentary group. “We protest against the accumulation of wealth in a few hands,” is one of the demands and goals, as well as the call for a tax on excess profits, a wealth tax and a wealth tax for the rich.
At the rally, this was represented not only by the Left Party, but also by the Catholic Workers’ Movement (KAB), the Verdi trade union, the Bavarian youth representative of the Food and Beverage Restaurant Trade Union (NGG), the Bund-Naturschutz-Jugend, the Falcons in the district Southern Bavaria, the Munich tenant protection initiative “Ausspeculated”, a nationwide alliance of people affected by poverty (#ichbinarmutsbattched), Fridays for Future, the Attac alliance, the Bavarian welfare association and the VdK Bayern social association.
They all formulated drastic warning calls to politicians and, like Arnold Schiller, who was suffering from poverty, reminded them that it was “a damned shame that there are so many people affected by poverty in the rich Federal Republic of Germany”, whereas “overwealth is not taxed”. Schiller emphasized that he was concerned with demands that had to be made within the existing system of democracy. They don’t want a new system, and they just don’t want to be taken in by “right-wing crooks”. But it’s now about urgent existential questions: “Can you pay the heating costs – or do you have to starve?” Schiller demanded a humane protection of poor people. Previous sentences were not enough, previous increases were “outrageous” in view of the price increases. It is not acceptable “that we leave the rich alone while we pick on the poor”.
The rain did not deter the demonstrators – they already feel left out in the rain by politics.
(Photo: Catherine Hess/Catherina Hess)
Two representatives of the “Spected Out” alliance dealt with what they considered to be non-transparent price increases by Stadtwerke München (SWM). Thomas Klühspieß castigated the “inexplicable rises” in gas prices, which SWM says are “among the highest in Germany” – which represents another enormous stress factor in relation to the highest rents in Germany in Munich. It is also inexplicable why district heating is becoming more expensive in a similar way, although other energy production, such as geothermal energy, also plays a role.
Rebecca Weyhmüller, representative of the Bund-Naturschutz-Jugend Bayern, also addressed similar criticism of the SWM, which is now selling its district heating three times as expensive as in 2021. She therefore goes one step further and demands: “We have to democratize the energy supply.” Climate protection still means class struggle, corporate profits and capitalism make life unnecessarily difficult for people. Their formula: “We can no longer afford food and energy? We can no longer afford the rich!”
Deacon Michael Wagner, President of the KAB Munich-Freising, presented himself as a harsh critic of existing capitalist conditions and received much applause. “Enough is enough – now it’s enough for that one up there, too,” he shouted, pointing towards the rainy sky. Arguing about the distribution of wealth is “vital – because poverty causes people to die”. Again and again Wagner referred to papal encyclicals and became clear: “Those who let people die through hunger are indirectly committing murder.” In this respect, an unjust distribution of wealth – i.e. all God-given income – is “exclusion and remnant of a feudal system”. “We show the face of our humanity to that inhumane wealth: now it’s enough”!
Among other things, the demonstrators called for higher wages, affordable rents and energy and decent basic security.
(Photo: Catherine Hess/Catherina Hess)
Jakob Nausch, chairman of the young NGG Bayern, reminded that not every price increase is God-given: “Prices don’t rise, they are increased – to increase profits!” Verdi district chairman Harald Pürzel followed up seamlessly with his call for the super-rich to be taxed fairly. “They don’t even notice, they already have their third vacation home.” It must finally be redistributed from the rich to the poor. Poorer people must be protected by “price brakes”, says Pürzel, and in this respect any increase in VAT is out of the question at the moment, because it would again hit the poorer disproportionately hard. Instead, at least wages and salaries must be compensated for inflation. He therefore sees no reason why trade unions should hold back on current collective bargaining demands – on the contrary.
The organizers’ concern that representatives of the extreme right could mingle with the demonstrators did not materialize. As a precaution, it was clearly pointed out at the microphone that “we resolutely oppose all attempts by the extreme right to misuse people’s social misery for their inhuman and anti-democratic purposes”. The demo at Rotkreuzplatz was peaceful. A rally with a similar motto has been announced for November 24 at Odeonsplatz. There it says: “Super rich to checkout.”