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People take part in a demonstration against right-wing extremism.
The Prime Minister of Baden-Württemberg, Winfried Kretschmann, (Alliance 90/The Greens, M) takes part in the demonstration.
© David Pichler/dpa
They wanted to once again set an example against the right: thousands took to the streets again in the southwest against extremism.
Among them was the father of the country.
Sigmaringen - In Baden-Württemberg, thousands of people took to the streets again to protest against right-wing extremism - including Prime Minister Winfried Kretschmann (Greens).
On Saturday he took part in a demonstration with around 2,000 people in Sigmaringen as a private individual with his wife Gerlinde.
Many families were also at the protest under blue skies and bright sunshine.
Posters read, among other things: “Against fascism”, “Refugees stay - drive out Nazis”, “Ekelhafd” and “Voting right is 1939”.
Kretschmann praised the commitment of the people demonstrating at the state government's New Year's reception on Friday evening: "The citizens of our country have sent a strong signal," said the head of government.
“I would like to thank the people of this country from the bottom of my heart for standing up and standing up for our democracy.”
There were further protest events in the southwest on Saturday, including in the state capital Stuttgart and in Singen, where the police counted around 4,000 participants in each, as well as in Tübingen with around 3,000 people.
A larger event was planned for the afternoon in Mannheim.
At least a dozen demonstrations were announced for Saturday, including in Ravensburg, Biberach, Rastatt, Bruchsal and Schwäbisch Gmünd.
Protests in Ludwigsburg, Esslingen and Leonberg were planned for Sunday.
The trigger for the nationwide protests were the revelations by the Correctiv research center about a meeting of the radical right on November 25th, in which AfD politicians as well as individual members of the CDU and the very conservative Values Union took part in Potsdam.
The former head of the right-wing extremist Identitarian Movement in Austria, Martin Sellner, said he spoke about “remigration” there.
When right-wing extremists use the term, they usually mean that large numbers of people of foreign origin should leave the country - even under duress.
According to police and organizers, at least 110,000 people demonstrated against right-wing extremism and for democracy in the southwest a week ago.
dpa