Federal Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt rejects criticism of his statements about the riots following the youth protests at the weekend. In a speech at the Federal Congress of the Police Union (GdP) in Berlin, the CSU politician said that he could not describe the violence he had seen on the streets in any other way.
“They are chaotic people and you can then discuss how to describe them further,” he said. "Are they chaotic people from the left, are they chaotic people from the right, are they Islamist chaotic people, are they chaotic people from a migrant background."
Praise from the Minister for Police Labor
When chaotic people attack police officers, it is important to be on the right side and protect the police force. Dobrindt also called for more recognition and appreciation for the work of the police. They carried out their operations “in a highly professional manner”. The minister rejected allegations that police violence had also contributed to an escalation.
According to the authorities, tens of thousands of people initially took to the streets peacefully during nationwide youth protests organized by the “GenZ regelt” group on Saturday. There were then riots in Frankfurt am Main, Cologne, Berlin and Hamburg, among others. The initiators of the youth protests distanced themselves from the violent perpetrators.
Haßelmann: A signal of division
Dobrindt's statements about the migrant origins of perpetrators had led to controversial debates and warnings about blanket judgments - which continue.
Green parliamentary group leader Britta Haßelmann said she couldn't understand what the expression "migrant milieu" meant. It is wrong to label people with a migration background - almost a third of the population - as a problem. "I fear that they will feel addressed even though they are not meant." Dobrindt is sending a signal of division and rejection. “And that is by no means an appropriate and justifiable response.” At the same time, she emphasized that criminal prosecution must take place where necessary.
Defense Minister Boris Pistorius also contradicted Dobrindt. “What are migrant groups?” asked the SPD politician on ZDF. "Are these people who live in Germany in the third generation and are German citizens? Where do we stop differentiating this?" Union parliamentary group deputy Norbert Röttgen (CDU) said on n-tv that there were many of the violent perpetrators "who are either foreigners or Germans of foreign descent." Nevertheless, he warned against generalizations: "There is no one milieu of migrants in Germany."
Police union supports Dobrindt
CDU General Secretary Franziska Hoppermann defended Dobrindt. “If you look at the pictures, you can see that they also came from certain migrant milieus,” Hoppermann told RTL and n-tv. Riots after the demonstrations made it clear that there was an integration problem.
The GdP also defended Dobrindt's statements. “Our colleagues, who stood up for our constitutional state and did so in an absolutely professional manner, confirm exactly these groups of perpetrators in their reports,” said the chairman of the GdP Federal Police Department, Andreas Roßkopf, to the Bild newspaper.
The GdP chairman Jochen Kopelke criticized the discussions about the origin or skin color of perpetrators as unhelpful. On Deutschlandfunk, when asked about the blanket defamation of entire social groups, he admitted that it would be hurtful for them. But at the same time he asked how people should be named. "Those are the ones in the pictures." Society has no way of dealing with or responding to this crime phenomenon.
Discussion about ban on protests
Hesse's Interior Minister Roman Poseck (CDU) then questioned further announced "Gen Z regulates" events. Stuttgart's mayor Frank Nopper (CDU) also did not rule out a ban on gatherings for further events.
Meanwhile, Baden-Württemberg's Prime Minister Cem Özdemir spoke out against restrictions on the right to demonstrate. Bans on gatherings are not the right way, he said. “We defend the right to demonstrate,” said the Green politician. At the same time, he called for prudence. Violence and destruction are in no way acceptable.
Left criticizes police behavior
Meanwhile, the Left criticized the police operations during the protests and requested a current hour in the Bundestag on the complex next Friday. “The pictures and reports we have seen and heard, of clubs, of tear gas, of cauldrons, are really shocking,” said parliamentary group leader Heidi Reichinnek. This must be “urgently addressed”.
The current hour should also discuss the topics and content of young people. There had been warnings about riots in advance against the background of the protests in France. Instead of dealing with the “legitimate concerns, the fears, the anger of these young people,” the entire protest was “criminalized” in advance, said Reichinnek.
