For the second week in a row, hundreds of thousands of people are protesting across Germany against the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) party. The protests escalated after investigative news website Correctiv reported on a meeting of right-wing extremists in Potsdam discussing migration policy, including mass deportations of foreigners, on Sunday, the 21st of January, reports Reuters.
The AfD, which comes second in national polls, has denied that the announced migration plans are party policy.
Rallies were held on Sunday in Berlin, Munich, Bremen and Cologne, as well as in traditional AfD districts in eastern Germany such as Leipzig and Dresden.
350,000 people protest in Berlin against far-right extremism and the rise of the AfD pic.twitter.com/NGcxIzGGPF
— UI International (@UI_GLOBAL) January 21, 2024
In Munich, police reported that the organisers ended the protest early because of the approximately 100 000 participants. Though organisers reported that 200 000 people took part in the protest.
Tens of thousands protest against far-right AfD party in Germany’s Munich pic.twitter.com/0yagFG1i8L
— PressTV Extra (@PresstvExtra) January 21, 2024
In Berlin, 30 000 people were present at the start of the event, with numbers increasing.
350.000 show Solidarity against the far right Party AfD in Berlin. #noafd #b2101 pic.twitter.com/lpOAUf1rkm
— Ferat Koçak (@der_neukoellner) January 21, 2024
Organisers estimate that on Saturday around 300 000 people participated in protests across the country.
Steffi Kirschenmann, a social consultant in Frankfurt, said that “this is a signal to the world” that Germany will not let it go unnoticed. She was one of tens of thousands of protesters who peacefully gathered in the centre of Frankfurt on Saturday.
In a video message released on Sunday, President Frank-Walter Steinmeier described the protests against right-wing extremism in Germany as a testament to the people’s firm stance and praised the participants for standing up against misanthropy and right-wing extremism.
German Vice-Chancellor Robert Habeck told a local newspaper that he considered the protests a testimony to democracy.
“Boersen-Zeitung” reported that companies listed on the DAX index of the German stock exchange issued public statements condemning xenophobia, anti-Semitism, and right-wing political extremism.
Also read: VIDEO | German farmers block roads in protest against subsidy cuts
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