Fuss about "Last Generation": Lesch filmed during conversation with demo participant – "Red line crossed"

The visit was an important concern for him: Harald Lesch exchanges ideas with other participants at a rally of the "Last Generation" in Munich.

Munich – "Now you have to be supported. After this, that can't be true," complains Harald Lesch (62), the cell phone camera hasn't even caught him yet. The renowned astrophysicist and science journalist took part in a rally initiated by the "Last Generation" in Munich on Thursday evening (25 May). The topic of the demonstration and the root of Lesch's rage: the treatment that the climate activists had recently received from the police and the judiciary.

Raid against members and website of the "Last Generation" blocked: Lesch sees "red line crossed"

Nationwide, investigators had searched the apartments of members of the "Last Generation" at the beginning of the week, Munich and Augsburg were also affected. The official hook was the "accusation of forming or supporting a criminal organization". In the course of the raid, the website of the "Last Generation" was blocked. The information text that subsequently appeared there provided plenty of material for discussion: "The homepage of the 'Last Generation' was confiscated by the Bavarian State Criminal Police Office on behalf of the Munich Public Prosecutor's Office – Bavarian Central Office for Combating Extremism and Terrorism (ZET). The Last Generation is a criminal organization according to §129 StGB! (Attention: Donations to the Last Generation are therefore a punishable support of the criminal organization!)."

Harald Lesch refers to this when he says: "For me, a red line has been crossed. You don't always have to agree with your actions. But you can't be treated like criminals." A demonstrator recorded how the TV physicist discusses the recent incidents in the heart of Munich with a young man – and spreads the result on Twitter. Lesch receives a lot of praise there for his clear statements. "They also exist, the good old white men. Two thumbs up for Lesch," commented one user.

Above all, the wording chosen by the judiciary on the website in question caused a stir. "Whether someone is a criminal or not is still determined by an independent court in Germany." – Comments like this went viral on Twitter. Meanwhile, the authorities are choosing a slightly more defensive tactic.

Homepage notice has since been deleted: Spokesman calls it "misleading"

Opposite buzzfeed.de of IPPEN. MEDIA, the spokesman for the Munich Public Prosecutor's Office, explained that there was only an initial suspicion that the "Last Generation" could be a criminal organization. This is not reflected in the warning on the website. " Due to this ambiguity, it has now been arranged to delete the notice," said the press spokesman.

"In your measures, there is the criminal law status of coercion," Lesch explains in Munich in the direction of the activists. "But that in no way justifies any raids. You're not a mafia." The protest march had set off on Thursday evening at around 19:30 p.m. in front of the Old Town Hall. About two hours later, the participants arrived at Odeonsplatz. A large contingent of police accompanied the rally. (lks)