Post by Bazza on May 10, 2005 3:28:51 GMT -5
Anti-fascist Germans stop neo-Nazi march in Berlin
A neo-Nazi march in Berlin was stopped by thousands of anti-fascist demonstrators on Sunday after a tense standoff that overshadowed Germany's ceremonies marking the end of World War II in Europe 60 years ago. Berlin police said 6,000 demonstrators opposed to the far-right National Democratic Party crowded into streets around Alexanderplatz square where 3,300 right-wing extremists gathered to protest what they called a German "cult of guilt".
Eager to prevent the violence that flares when leftists try to stop far-right marches, authorities ordered the NPD to stay at Alexanderplatz behind a buffer zone of barricades and police. Two hours later the NPD decided to abandon the march. Anti-Nazi demonstrators, many sitting on streets in front of water canon, cheered when police announced on loudspeakers that the march was cancelled. Holding one of their biggest rallies ever, the far-right then stayed at the square, where there were some scuffles with leftists who got close to barricades.
Police arrested eight on both sides for throwing bottles or using the outlawed "Hitler salute". Most Germans see May 8, 1945 as a day of liberation. The motto of the anti-Nazi rally borrowed the word for "Thanks" in Russian: "Spasibo — We say thank you." Some carried banners reading "Fascism never again" and "War never again". The NPD, citing constitutional free speech guarantees, had originally wanted to march through the Brandenburg Gate, a symbol of unification, and past a new Holocaust memorial. "This was not a day of ''liberation'' but a day of defeat for Germany and it's nothing to celebrate," said NPD leader Udo Voigt.
The extremists with shaven heads and black clothing were required to pass through tight police screening to the rally. "A lot of Germans are tired of hearing May 8 called a day of ''liberation''," Voigt said, criticising the anti-fascists as intolerant. "Almost every German has relatives expelled from the east or a grandfather who was killed. We''re here to mourn the millions of Germans killed in the war." In a speech in parliament, President Horst Koehler said most Germans were relieved "and numbed" when the war ended. "There are unfortunately incorrigibles still among us who want a return to the racism and right-wing extremism," Koehler said.
A neo-Nazi march in Berlin was stopped by thousands of anti-fascist demonstrators on Sunday after a tense standoff that overshadowed Germany's ceremonies marking the end of World War II in Europe 60 years ago. Berlin police said 6,000 demonstrators opposed to the far-right National Democratic Party crowded into streets around Alexanderplatz square where 3,300 right-wing extremists gathered to protest what they called a German "cult of guilt".
Eager to prevent the violence that flares when leftists try to stop far-right marches, authorities ordered the NPD to stay at Alexanderplatz behind a buffer zone of barricades and police. Two hours later the NPD decided to abandon the march. Anti-Nazi demonstrators, many sitting on streets in front of water canon, cheered when police announced on loudspeakers that the march was cancelled. Holding one of their biggest rallies ever, the far-right then stayed at the square, where there were some scuffles with leftists who got close to barricades.
Police arrested eight on both sides for throwing bottles or using the outlawed "Hitler salute". Most Germans see May 8, 1945 as a day of liberation. The motto of the anti-Nazi rally borrowed the word for "Thanks" in Russian: "Spasibo — We say thank you." Some carried banners reading "Fascism never again" and "War never again". The NPD, citing constitutional free speech guarantees, had originally wanted to march through the Brandenburg Gate, a symbol of unification, and past a new Holocaust memorial. "This was not a day of ''liberation'' but a day of defeat for Germany and it's nothing to celebrate," said NPD leader Udo Voigt.
The extremists with shaven heads and black clothing were required to pass through tight police screening to the rally. "A lot of Germans are tired of hearing May 8 called a day of ''liberation''," Voigt said, criticising the anti-fascists as intolerant. "Almost every German has relatives expelled from the east or a grandfather who was killed. We''re here to mourn the millions of Germans killed in the war." In a speech in parliament, President Horst Koehler said most Germans were relieved "and numbed" when the war ended. "There are unfortunately incorrigibles still among us who want a return to the racism and right-wing extremism," Koehler said.