Pacifists demand peace: Peace dust demos: Thousands do with Easter marches

Thousands of people took part in Easter marches on the holiday weekend to express their demand for peace in the world. The organizers spoke of 100 actions across Germany. The first rallies had been made on Maundy Thursday, the last followed on Easter Monday. According to the police, around 1,100 people gathered for an Easter march in Frankfurt am Main on Monday, the organizers spoke of 3,500.

In Hamburg, the police spoke of around 2,600 participants on the Easter March. According to police, 600 participants in Dortmund and in Büchel (Rhineland-Palatinate) around 300. According to unconfirmed information, US atom weapons are to be stored in the air base there. People demanded more commitment to peace in Ukraine and the Middle East as well as a no to the planned stationing of US medium-sized weapons in Germany.

Kristian Golla from the Network Peace Cooperative regarded this year’s Easter march as a “clear sign of peace, diplomacy and disarmament and against the upgrading plans of the upcoming black and red coalition”. “The upcoming federal government has to rely much more on diplomatic solutions and de -escalation to enclose the many international conflicts.”

Highlight of the peace movement in the 1980s

The Easter marches are organized decentrally by unions, left and Christian groups as well as peace groups on site. They are significantly smaller today than at the peak of the movement at the beginning of the 1980s, when the fear of a nuclear war between east and west was great.

When asked why in view of the global political situation, people no longer participated in the Easter marches, says Golla that compared to previous years there were more participants. However, he admits that the level of the 80s and thus the wedding of the peace movement have not been achieved. “The peace movement is a reflection of society, even in our middle the question of arms deliveries to Ukraine is controversial – and there are peace -moved people who accept arms deliveries to Ukraine in view of the Russian aggression.”

These people would then not have demonstrated, although they basically continue to close the peace movement. Golla also suspects that many people find the world situation so bleak that they urgently need relaxation and therefore do not participate in the Easter marches. “You need free time to recharge your batteries. The peace movement is active on 365 days a year and not just four days at Easter.”