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The protests against the federal government’s anti-crown measures, registered for today in Leipzig, start differently than planned by the organizers. Like the city administration wrote on Twitter, the demonstration at Kurt-Masur-Platz “cannot start because the applicant’s mask exemption certificate is incomplete and cannot be accepted.”
The leader of the rally meeting then withdrew his record. That’s what the police said. Then there is no meeting.
The police asked the people who had already arrived at Kurt-Masur-Platz to “leave the area in peace”. The police had previously blocked the square because it had reached its maximum capacity with 500 people.
From Nikolaikirche, a group of about 200 people began to move, many of them without masks. Also masked, were among them suspected right-wing extremists with black, white and red flags. The group’s target was apparently the downtown ring, but in the meantime they have been surrounded by police. Officials want to dissolve the unrecorded meeting. The police told SPIEGEL that whoever did not go voluntarily, their personal data would be recorded.
According to estimates by a SPIEGEL reporter, around 1,000 to 1,500 people had previously gathered in the city center to protest against the planned demonstration. At noon, a few hundred people gathered at Augustusplatz. The “Leipzig takes place” campaign network called for this and has recorded rallies in three central locations in the city.
The police are deployed with a large contingent from various federal states, they brought water cannons and cleaning tanks to their position near the demonstration. Agents also used barriers to separate the meetings from each other. However, there were first discussions in the afternoon. The situation is not easy, said a police spokesman.
Eight meetings announced in Leipzig
Just two weeks ago, a large, sometimes chaotic demonstration of “lateral thinking” in Leipzig sparked anger and heated political debates.
A total of eight meetings were announced Saturday at various venues across the fair town, five of which are related to criticism of current Corona policy and counter-protests.
Currently, due to the crown situation, only a maximum of 1000 participants per rally is allowed in Saxony. The police also addressed applicable requirements, such as the minimum distance and the mask requirement.
Several hundred protesters in other cities
Opponents of the Crown measures also gathered for demonstrations in Bochum, Göppingen and Pforzheim on Saturday; More protests were planned in Hannover and Berlin. According to the police, there were around 300 people in Bochum at the beginning of the demonstration. The situation is peaceful. Consequently, there were no serious violations of the conditions or problems by the counter-demonstration. According to the police, around 300 people also attended the counter-demonstration.
Also in Göppingen and Pforzheim everything went quietly in the early afternoon, according to the police. According to a dpa photographer, around 800 people gathered in Göppingen, and in Pforzheim the police spoke of around 450 participants.
Note: This article will be continually updated.
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