Chancellor Scholz and Foreign Minister Verborg also attended the protest.
Baerbok “Anti-fascism protest as a local resident”
When it became known that a right-wing German politician had discussed mass deportation of immigrants, protests against such political action erupted in the capital city of Berlin.
According to foreign news outlets such as AP and dpa, on the 14th (local time), thousands of citizens gathered in front of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, the capital, and in the nearby city of Potsdam, to protest against far-right parties and the mass deportation of immigrants and others advocated by them.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, a member of the Potsdam constituency, and German Foreign Minister Annalena Verbock also attended the site.
The protest, which started in Duisburg the day before, spread to Berlin and Potsdam, where deportation discussions called the ‘Master Plan’ took place.
In an interview with dpa, Minister Verbok said, “I participated in the protest as one of thousands of local residents who defend democracy and oppose new and old fascism.”
Potsdam Mayor Mike Schubert warned, “This plan (mass deportations) is reminiscent of the darkest chapter in German history.” This is interpreted as a reference to Nazism, which committed massacre and discrimination against Jews under anti-Semitism.
On the 11th, Prime Minister Scholz also left the same message on social networking services (SNS).
He said, “Learning from history is more than just paying lip service. “Democrats must stick together,” he said, adding, “We protect everyone, regardless of origin, skin color, or how uncomfortable it may be for fanatics with fantasies of homogenization.”
Previously, Corrective, a German non-profit investigative reporting media, reported on the 10th that about 20 people, including former and current Alternative for Germany (AfD) lawmakers, secretly met at a mansion in Potsdam, near the capital Berlin, in November of last year to discuss the master plan.
The master plan aims to return people who have already obtained citizenship to their regions of origin, such as North Africa, if they are not of orthodox pure-blood German descent. According to the plan, up to 2 million people living in Germany would be at risk of deportation.
It is known that two people from the large center-right opposition party, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), including a high-ranking member of the AfD, were also present at the event. Although the CDU has officially ruled out the possibility of a coalition with the AfD, this scandal has revealed that far-right forces remain within the CDU.
As the controversy arose, the AfD is trying to sever ties with the party, claiming that those who attended the meeting participated purely as individuals.
The AfD, which preaches anti-immigration policies, has the highest approval ratings in five eastern German states. In national opinion polls, it ranks second in approval ratings for all political parties.
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.