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The sun shines on Little Venice. This is the name of the Constanza fairgrounds, not far from the old town on the shores of Lake Constance, where this Sunday the “lateral thinking” initiative protests against the crown measures of politics. Around 2,500 to 3,000 protesters came, according to police. They have brought blankets and supplies. The atmosphere is more like a picnic than an overthrow. But the central idea is clear.
Chancellor Angela Merkel and Health Minister Jens Spahn are described as “constitutional criminals (criminals)” and the parties as “Covid Mafia” on posters. “Masks are child abuse” is another slogan. At the same time, the speakers on stage argue against the minimum distance and a supposed vaccination requirement. “They want to turn us into numbers!” Shouts one of them. It has a button that can be hugged on your shirt.
None of the protesters cover their mouths and noses. The crowd is mixed, there are families with children, some young people and many older people. Side thinkers mainly wear all-purpose clothing and trekking shoes, as well as backpacks. There are bankrupt esoteric women and doctors, teachers and restaurateurs. A Krishna monk tries to bring his writings to the people. Free Church Seven-day Adventists seize the opportunity to do missionary work.
Climbing lessons in Berlin
The atmosphere is calm. This is also guaranteed by a massive police presence. The fact that the manifestation of “lateral thinking” takes place in Konstanz is related to the escalation in Berlin at the end of August. According to the police, 38,000 people demonstrated there against Corona’s measures. Including conspiracy theorists, Reich citizens, and right-wing extremists who had tried to storm the Reichstag.
The Stuttgart initiative “lateral thinking 711” is not currently supervised by the State Office for the Protection of the Constitution in Baden-Württemberg. A spokesman for the service stated, however, that “both right-wing extremists such as the ‘Reichsbürger’ and ‘self-administrators’ have influenced demonstrations against state measures practically since the start of the crown pandemic.” The development will be continuously analyzed.
After the “assault on the Reichstag”, the main organizer of “lateral thinking”, Michael Ballweg, distanced himself from the influence of the right and declared that they would move to Lake Constance and make a spatial separation from the extremists. The Stuttgart IT entrepreneur has apparently succeeded. “No one from the spectrum of the right is away from home at the demonstration in Constance,” a police spokesman told SPIEGEL.
The city had banned Imperial war flags and Imperial flags beforehand. According to the Police, around 2,200 of the so-called lateral thinkers took to the streets yesterday in the area of the city against Corona’s measures. At the same time, around 11,000 protesters tried to form a complete human chain in the lake, which was actually supposed to connect Germany, Austria and Switzerland. But that did not work.
“From mega event to unrealistic air bubble”
German organizers had previously announced that up to 250,000 people would participate in the human chain. But his Swiss comrades in arms surrendered in exasperation days ago. In a statement from the Zurich branch of the movement, it was said that the “grandly heralded mega-event with a boat demonstration and giant fireworks display is increasingly turning into an unrealistic bubble.”
That doesn’t bother the protesters in Little Venice. They are happy that they can finally let their anger at the virus, the state and the “mainstream media” run free again. “The corona measurements are disproportionate to the number of infections,” says Wolfgang Rasenberger. The 61-year-old flight captain, currently on a short-term job, arrived in Constance with his wife Ramona from Saxony-Anhalt.
She says: “I grew up in the East and sometimes I have the feeling that it will be the same as back then. You can no longer say what you want.” He says: “They call us ‘Covidiotes’. In the discussion, many scientific voices are simply ignored.” It describes the actions taken by the federal government as “abuse of power.” They are too far-reaching to decide without consulting citizens.
Driven by mistrust
Green politician and security expert Konstantin von Notz told SPIEGEL: “Of course, the democratic protest is legitimate, also and especially against the far-reaching restrictions on the freedom of the Crown’s measures.” Compliance with the measures to combat pandemics is important, but, of course, that does not mean “that they do not have to be periodically controlled to determine their necessity and proportionality. That is normal in the rule of law.”
Hardly anyone has confidence in the rule of law in demonstrating “lateral thinking.” Above all, it is a deep mistrust that drives the protesters. The event in Constance lasts until late at night. After that, calm returns to Little Venice.
