Farmers’ protest in Germany: First tractors in Berlin – Court allows highway blockades 27 guests rescued from the balconies of a burning hotel in Tyrol

The protesting farmers arrived in central Berlin on Sunday evening at 5 p.m. They drove from the Victory Column to the Brandenburg Gate under a police escort. They originally planned to start on Monday. A meeting is scheduled for Monday from midnight to 10 p.m. But because the farmers feared that they would no longer be able to reach the capital due to traffic, they started working on it on Sunday evening.

Protests are planned with about a hundred smugglers from three to four states. However, the demonstrators did not report this premature action to the police. Security forces will close June 17 Street from 5 p.m., which could result in some farmers being turned away from the barriers.

First of all, the farmers want to pull over their vehicles due to the lack of registration and block the road from June 17 from 11 p.m.

The Court authorizes highway blockades around Berlin

Farmers will be allowed to block highway entrances on Monday following a decision by the Higher Administrative Court of Berlin-Brandenburg. The police did not enforce any requirements that provided restrictions on registered blockade actions. A spokesperson for the Potsdam police station confirms a report from “Bild” and “BZ”.

According to police spokesman Mario Heinemann, the requirements included that not all highway entrances could be blocked and not for the entire requested period. In some places there are blockages from morning to evening. However, the Berlin Administrative Court declared the requirements inadmissible. The OVG has rejected a complaint from the police.

Staatsboer president Henri Wendorff tells ‘Bild’: ‘According to the court, the danger of continuously opening and closing the blocks would be greater than of a permanent closure. Opening and closing would lead to backlogs and chaos.” Emergency rescue lanes should still remain open. In total, the farmers want to block 25 highway entrances. Further protests are planned in Berlin and Brandenburg.

Bavaria-SPD: CSU and free voters irresponsible

According to Bavarian SPD leader Florian von Brunn, the CSU and the Free Voters are responding irresponsibly to the farmers’ protests. “It is extremely dangerous for (CSU leader) Markus Söder to claim that the form of the protests shows that ‘a very large part of the population has no hope at all of achieving change through normal means,’” ​​von Brunn said in Munich. “With such statements he publicly shows his understanding for violations of the law and promotes conspiracy theories.” The path to change in a democracy consists of elections and votes in parliament.

Bavarian Prime Minister Söder showed fundamental understanding for the protests at the start of the CSU winter retreat in the Upper Bavarian Seeon Monastery on Saturday. However, these should take place on the basis of the rule of law. At the same time, he warned that “radical groups such as the AfD would try” to exploit the current protests for their own purposes. The shape of the protests shows that “a very large part of the population has no hope at all of achieving change through normal means.”

Von der Leyen calls for peaceful protests

On Sunday morning, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen expressed understanding for the concerns of farmers demonstrating in Germany, but criticized violent actions. “Violence has no place in democracy,” she said during the retreat of CSU members of the Bundestag at the Seeon Monastery in Upper Bavaria. “Dialogue is the central instrument in democracy.”

At the same time, Von der Leyen emphasized: “I can very well understand the concerns of farmers in the sense that they rightly demand recognition for ensuring our food security and that they must also earn an adequate income for this.” That is why a structured dialogue has now started at European level with farmers and the entire supply chain. “We want to work with you to find solutions for the scenarios of the future.”

lst/t-online