Berlin. Tens of thousands of young people, mostly peaceful on the streets, but then some serious riots: The riots after youth demonstrations in several German cities and especially in Frankfurt am Main on Sunday night are condemned across all parties. The focus is particularly on the willingness to use violence in certain groups with a migrant background. At the same time, there are calls to pay more attention to young people's concerns, such as education.
In Frankfurt, stones and incendiary bottles were thrown, rioters destroyed shop windows and there was looting. More than 100 police officers were injured. After mostly peaceful demonstrations by thousands of young people, there were also riots and clashes with the police in Cologne, Hamburg and Berlin, but not as violently as in the banking metropolis on the Main.
The Hessian Interior Minister Roman Poseck (CDU) announced consistent criminal prosecution. “This group of perpetrators was predominantly migrant,” he said in Frankfurt. “There can be no false taboos here.” In the future, the authorities would pay even more attention to violent young people with a migration background. “In this way, we also protect the many people with a migrant background in our country who adhere to the law.”
Federal Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt (CSU) told “Bild” that “violent left-wing groups and chaotic people from the migrant milieu” had hijacked the peaceful demonstrations on Saturday afternoon. “The rioters and looters will be identified and held accountable.” The police prevented “excesses of violence like in Paris”. The operational concept with a massive presence and decentralized deployment of forces worked.
The “Gen Z regulates” initiative called for peaceful demonstrations in around 30 cities. The abbreviation stands for “Generation Z” of around 15 to 30 year olds. The demands include more money for schools, more climate protection and measures against rising living costs. Before the escalations, the initiative drew a positive conclusion. Across the country, hundreds of thousands of people have shown what they are taking to the streets for. According to police figures, there were more than 65,000. There were also demonstrations in Mainz, Munich, Nuremberg, Erfurt, Magdeburg, Dresden and Leipzig, with many migrant youth among the peaceful participants.
“We had no influence on what happened after the end of the rallies,” said a spokesman for the initiative. It released a statement in which it distanced itself from “all forms of violence and from violent actions by other groups or individuals.”
In some cities the mood changed after the meetings. In Frankfurt, the police cordoned off the Zeil shopping street and special operations forces (SEK) were active. A police officer lost teeth after a stone was thrown in his face, Poseck said. Five stores were therefore looted. 54 people between the ages of 13 and 29, mostly of German nationality, were arrested. According to operations management, 87 criminal complaints were filed.
In Cologne there were attacks on police officers near the main train station, with bottles and bicycles being thrown. Police Chief Johannes Hermanns said: “We have seized Molotov cocktails and emergency hammers from masked people.” Bottles, firecrackers and eggs being thrown were reported in Berlin, and burning barricades were reported in Hamburg. In some cities, police used water cannons. According to police figures, there were at least 250 arrests nationwide, as well as hundreds of investigations.
Federal Education Minister Karin Prien (CDU) condemned the riots, but wants to expressly address important questions raised by young people. She told the German Press Agency: “The fact that those prepared to use violence have literally hijacked the demonstrations in some places obscures the view of the actual concerns of the young generation.” She particularly regrets this. The majority took to the streets peacefully. “I hear their voices and I want to have a deeper conversation with them.” Prien emphasized: “The concerns of young people are justified and extremely relevant.”
The co-ruling SPD called for a national education summit with states and municipalities. “The right to good education and training is a focus of the protests and an area in which we have an obligation to act quickly now,” said SPD parliamentary group deputy Dagmar Schmidt.
Green Party leader Franziska Brantner condemned the riots. “Violence harms the legitimate concerns of the many who protested peacefully,” she told the “Rheinische Post”. The Left Chairwoman Ines Schwerdtner told the newspaper: “Neither the affordability crisis nor the social cuts nor the broad will for peaceful protest disappears because small groups of frustrated people rioted afterwards.”
The “Gen Z Rules” initiative announced that protest actions would continue. The aim is to take part in Europe-wide protests on November 20th. On this day, an alliance is also calling for participation in an “International Youth Strike Day”. This includes the Federal Student Conference, which distanced itself from the actions of “Gen Z regulates” - on the grounds that their organizational structures were unclear.
