“We do not protect people who trample on our legal system”

Hesse's Interior Minister Roman Poseck has warned against using the planned social protests on October 31st to cover up with Halloween masks. "A mask has no place in demonstrations. It is fundamentally prohibited," said Poseck on the news channel WELT TV. “Halloween is one thing, the demonstration is another.”

It is unfortunate that both events occurred on the same day. Anyone who wants to demonstrate peacefully must adhere to the rules and refrain from provocations. The Hessian police will be “present with a strong presence,” for example in Frankfurt, the Interior Minister announced.

Poseck assumes that the police can fundamentally distinguish between demonstrators and Halloween revelers. However, she will take consistent action in the event of violations. This applies to masking as well as to violence against property and people. “We protect the right to demonstrate, but we do not protect people who trample on our legal system,” he said.

Poseck also did not rule out dissolving meetings in individual cases. "This has to be examined on a case-by-case basis. The possibility can certainly exist." If a demonstration is misused and becomes a “pure Halloween procession,” police intervention is also possible.