Europe News, Delhi- Magazine: On Saturday, August 28 in Berlin, thousands of people took part in several separate protests. Demonstrated against restrictions introduced by the German authorities in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic. Police used pepper spray to defend access to the government district.
Police estimated the number of participants to be “in the low four-digit range”. During the protests, most of which took place despite the bans, there were 80 arrests, and these actions were directed primarily against the ringleaders in order to prevent a further escalation of events – the spokeswoman for the police said in an interview with the portal.
After 14, a group of several hundred demonstrators set off towards the government district, trying to overcome police barriers. Officers used pepper spray. As police said on Twitter, more than 50 protesters were led out of the crowd and released after being identified.
The Berlin police were preparing in advance for a possible large-scale operation, incl. asking for support from the service from other federal states. Over 4,200 policemen are to keep order and security in the capital on Saturday and Sunday.
13 Planned Demonstrations
On Friday, August 27, the police informed on Twitter of a ban on 13 demonstrations planned for the weekend, including at least eight pandemic restrictions recorded by opponents. On the same day, four urgent applications were submitted to the administrative court against these bans. The judges rejected three of them. In the case of the fourth, they concluded that the event registered for Saturday and Sunday, intended to attract 500 participants, does not pose a direct threat to public safety.
Police said they would “enforce the ban on gatherings … and protect the government district in particular,” as participants in rallies and demonstrations “regularly do not accept legal regulations … against infection.” Rbb24 reminds that the number of such demonstrations has decreased in recent months. The last major march in Berlin took place on August 1 – despite the bans, several thousand demonstrators marched through the city streets, clashes with the police took place.