On the 30th anniversary of the racist arson attack in Solingen, the leaders of the state came to the city for a demonstrative solidarity against racism and right-wing violence.
30 years after the racist arson attack in Solingen, Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier called for a vigilant and defensive state against right-wing terror. “As Federal President, I cannot remain silent about the climate in which these attacks took place,” said Steinmeier at a commemoration event in Solingen.
“Immediately after the arson attack, all the rope ladders here in Solingen were sold out,” Steinmeier recalled. “People were afraid they wouldn’t be able to get out of the upper floor of their house in an emergency. At that time, water buckets were available in the apartments so that they could quickly extinguish a fire. All foreign-sounding names on the doorbells and mailboxes were removed .”
Steinmeier said that the country had been fed up with claims made by blinded lone perpetrators for far too long. The structures and the ideology of the perpetrators have long been ignored. “I’m talking about right-wing extremism, about racism, about misanthropy.”
Steinmeier: “I call that: terror”
Right-wing extremists and racists dehumanized individuals and thus spread fear and terror. “I call it: terror. This right-wing terror is responsible for the dead here in Solingen. This right-wing terror existed before Solingen, and it will exist after Solingen,” said the Federal President.
“I’m stunned when I hear that individual members of the security authorities who are supposed to prevent right-wing extremist attacks are organizing themselves in right-wing chat groups. We cannot and must not tolerate that,” Steinmeier demanded.
30 years ago, on May 29, 1993, five Turkish girls and women died when right-wing extremists set fire to the house of the Genç family: Saime Genç (4), Hülya Genç (9), Gülüstan Öztürk (12), Hatice Genç (18) and Gursun Ince (27). The attack is considered one of the most serious racist crimes in the history of the Federal Republic.
Shortly after the crime, four young right-wing extremists from Solingen between the ages of 16 and 23 were arrested. You belonged to the right-wing scene and were convicted of murder in 1995.
“Even 30 years after the cruel act in Solingen, we are still stunned, angry, sad,” said Steinmeier. But: We are not intimidated, not helpless, not inactive.”
Faeser: “United against racist sentiment”
“It is always important in such situations that politicians unite against this racist atmosphere,” said Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD), who also came to Solingen.
“Back then we didn’t take action early enough, we didn’t see the connections back then. That was a failure of the politicians at the time, and it has to be clearly stated as such,” said Faeser on the fringes of the commemoration event.
“That’s why I’m glad that all three levels are here. The municipality is doing a great job, the state government is well represented, the federal government is well represented, the Federal President himself is there. Those are the right signals on such a day of remembrance. “
“May 29 is one of the darkest days in the history of our country,” said NRW Prime Minister Hendrik Wüst (CDU). “It was an attack committed out of hatred. How can anyone hate a four-year-old?”
Solingen Mayor Tim Kurzbach (SPD) recalled the words of Mevlüde Genç, who died last October and lost several family members in the attack: “The death of my children should open us up to becoming friends.” A square in the city was named after the Federal Cross of Merit bearer on Sunday.
Turkey’s Deputy Foreign Minister Yasin Ekrem Serim thanked those responsible in the city of Solingen for making the commemoration of the attack the “DNA of the city”. The help from Germany for the victims of the severe earthquake in Turkey was also very gratefully received and registered in his country.
Relatives attend the memorial service
In addition to federal and state ministers, the President of the Bundestag Bärbel Bas (SPD) and the President of the State Parliament André Kuper (CDU), the surviving family members and relatives of the victims also took part in the memorial event.
Finally, a granddaughter of Mevlüde Genç took the floor at the end of the event: Her grandmother did not leave Germany after the attack, but called for love and prudence and deliberately applied for German citizenship, said Özlem Genç.
“Hate brings death,” said her grandmother, embodying the triumphant victory of good over evil. Today, however, one must also ask oneself whether the problem is the loud minority that is flooding the Internet with hatred, or the broad majority that is unable to say the right thing.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
