A day before the G7 summit at Schloss Elmau, a number of organizations gather in Munich to protest. But at the beginning of the rally, interest is significantly lower than expected.
The large-scale demonstration at the G7 summit in Munich on Saturday initially only met with muted interest. According to estimates by observers, a maximum of a low four-digit number of participants had gathered on the Theresienwiese at the beginning of the event.
However, a further influx of participants was expected. Initially, there was no official estimate from the police. The organizers initially said nothing about the number of participants.
So far no serious incidents
The police had stated that they were expecting a lively crowd at the protest event, also because of the good weather. The demo took place one day before the start of the summit in Elmau. In advance, the number of participants was estimated at at least 20,000. According to the Munich police, there were no reportable incidents until shortly before the rally began.
15 anti-globalisation associations from Attac to the environmental organization WWF have called for the demonstration in Munich. The rally has four focal points: the exit from fossil fuels, the preservation of animal and plant diversity, social justice on the planet and the fight against hunger. “Climate crisis, species extinction, inequality: the G7 countries are responsible for the fact that the global social and ecological crises are becoming ever more dramatic. Stop it. Fair is different », it says in the call for participation.
“For us, that’s the clear limit”
“We expect it to be a peaceful, colorful and beautiful demonstration,” emphasized the organizer of the rally, Uwe Hiksch from the Friends of Nature. The Campact association, which specializes in online campaigns, Greenpeace, the Association for the Environment and Nature Conservation, Misereor and Bread for the World are also involved. The managing director of Greenpeace Germany, Martin Kaiser, also emphasized that the protest in Munich must be non-violent. “For us, that’s the clear limit,” Kaiser told the “Passauer Neue Presse”.
Federal Minister of the Interior Nancy Faeser (SPD) also called on the critics of the G7 summit to promote non-violence. “I expect all demonstrators to protest peacefully, not hurting anyone and not destroying cars or shops,” Faeser told the news portal t-online. Groups from the left-wing extremist scene caused her the greatest concern.
Police with 3000 forces in action
According to the Munich police, who want to ensure a peaceful process with around 3,000 emergency services, a black block with a high three-digit number of people could cause unrest. The nationwide mobilization is not as strong as at the G7 summit seven years ago, it said.
As in 2015, the G7 summit will be held at Schloss Elmau in the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen. From June 26th to 28th, the heads of state and government of seven leading Western industrialized countries and some guest countries will meet there. In addition to Germany, the G7 group includes the USA, Canada, Great Britain, France, Italy and Japan. A total of around 18,000 police officers are on duty around the summit.
