Demonstrations: Easter marches in the sign of the peace dust

With the demand for peace and an end to the upgrade, peace activists in the traditional Easter marches have moved through several cities. According to the first estimates by the police, the larger demonstrations, for example in the Ruhr area, in Wiesbaden and in Kassel, came together. According to the officials, around 1,800 people in Berlin took part in an Easter march under the motto “Yes Zum Peace”.

Central topics are the demand for disarmament and a nuclear weapons -free world as well as the termination of wars, such as in Ukraine and Israel.

“Peace -capable instead of warlike”

“This year the Easter marches are aimed particularly at the new government and are demanding that Germany become peaceful instead of war,” said Kristian Golla from the Network Peace Cooperative with a view to the future black and red coalition. This applies especially to the course in Ukraine policy. “The way to peace for people in Ukraine does not lead more and more weapons, but about negotiations,” he said.

In some cities, the influx of Easter marches is greater this year than last, the peace and future workshop in Frankfurt said. However, the Easter marches are now significantly smaller than at the peak of the movement at the beginning of the 1980s.

Criticism of some positions of the peace movement

In Berlin, however, some people with Ukraine flags also gathered into a counter-demonstration. They held signs with inscriptions such as “Democracy must be defensive!” And “false pacifism kills” in the hands.

Green boss Franziska Brantner also critically commented on certain demonstration calls of the Easter marches. “We have the desire for peace, absolutely,” she told the “Weektzaz”. With regard to positions, for example against arms deliveries to the Ukraine attacked by Russia, she added: “What bothers me about such demo calls: to be left to me, to be anti-imperialist, to stand up to the attacked and not the aggressors.”

Events in more than 90 cities

The Easter marches are organized decentrally by unions, left and Christian groups as well as peace groups on site. According to various networks that bundle the proste, there should be actions in more than 90 cities over the weekend, most of them on Holy Saturday.