Police spokesman after corona protest: "The situation was not under control"

Created: 12/16/2021, 4:47 PM

By: Leoni Billina, Phillip Plesch

According to the police, around 3700 people demonstrated against the corona measures on Ludwigstrasse on Wednesday.

© Oliver Bodmer

The demonstration against the corona measures with thousands of participants on Wednesday has consequences.

The police complained that the concept of the district administration department was inadequate and that the route could not be controlled.

OB Reiter threatens extremists with decisive measures.

As reported, several thousand people had gathered between Odeonsplatz and Schellingstrasse, called by the alliance “Munich stands up”. According to the police, around 3700 people were at the rally on Ludwigstrasse. For comparison: on the previous Wednesday there were 1,450, two weeks ago there were only around 300 protesters. The police record: 18 reports of violations of the mask requirement, one report of illegally flying a drone, 28 arrests for insulting or bodily harm. 400 police officers were on duty.

In the run-up, there had been resentment among the organizers: Instead of a protest march through the city, the district administration department (KVR) had only allowed a rally on Ludwigstrasse. However, only part of the crowd adhered to this requirement: In the course of the evening, two groups, each with around 500 demonstrators, split off. Some of them ran in the direction of Theresienstraße before they were guided back by the police, and others made their way via Altstadtring and Stachus in the direction of Sendlinger Straße - regardless of the rush hour traffic, they walked between the cars. According to eyewitnesses, the KVR stewards were forced to regulate the traffic and let the scattered go. The organizer is now being investigated “for holding a meeting that has not been reported”.According to KVR "the necessary distances were not maintained, the participants were crowded, the mask requirement was largely ignored, the stewards in no way interfered with the observance of the requirements". District administration officer Thomas Böhle is concerned: "Many participants behaved very aggressively towards the police."

"We are not satisfied with the effort."

Their spokesman Andreas Franken drew a corresponding conclusion yesterday: "We are not satisfied with the effort," he said.

"The situation was not under control, that will have consequences." Franken criticizes the KVR: Its stewardship concept must be critically questioned.

“That was very negative.” The venue was also not well chosen.

“Our wish would be to move it back to Theresienwiese.” Yesterday, the KVR only responded to these allegations that they would sit down with the police to prevent excesses the next time.

No new demonstration has yet been registered.

The organizers announce, of course, that they want to take to the streets every Wednesday.

Dieter Reiter addresses the people of Munich with an appeal.

Mayor Dieter Reiter (SPD) showed no understanding for the incidents: "When violence is exercised at demonstrations, infection protection requirements, which serve to protect everyone, are grossly disregarded and referred to as 'dictatorial measures' and the Holocaust is played down when in Telegram groups If plans are forged for attacks on politicians, journalists and scientists, then that is unbearable and by far exceeds the limit of legitimate criticism of corona measures. We will take decisive action against all anti-democratic activities in the area of ​​corona deniers. "

It is not for the first time that the protests have been linked to a trivialization of the Holocaust.

The Research and Information Center Antisemitism Bavaria (RIAS Bavaria) documented numerous anti-Semitic statements in the course of the growing number of gatherings related to the pandemic.