[ad_1]
SedanBerlin police used water cannons against thousands of protesters on Wednesday. They did not want to leave the area between the Reichstag building, the Brandenburg Gate and the Strasse des 17. Juni. Among the participants who were to be “separated” with the help of the water cannons, as police spokesman Thilo Cablitz put it, there were also children. Cablitz confirmed this while using the water cannons.
“We couldn’t help it, there was no other option,” the spokesperson told the rbb. However, the water cannons were used “only for irrigation.” From minute 0.49 onwards, Cablitz literally says: “We cannot use the direct beam at the moment because there are children among it.”
In this context, many people on Twitter criticized the fact that children have been used as “protective shields” for the protesters. Several outraged users demanded that the youth welfare office intervene if parents bring their children to such a demonstration.
Meanwhile, it is unclear for what specific reason the order to use the water cannons was given. Police said the water cannons had been used to enforce the dissolution of the meeting. A spokeswoman says they want it to be “uncomfortable for people.”
Berlin Interior Senator Andreas Geisel later announced: “It was clear that the protesters had a clear goal of breaking the rules and reaching the Reichstag.” Therefore, there was no other option but to use water cannons. According to the police, a water cannon was last used in Berlin on May 1, 2013.
At the end of the mission, Operations Director Stephan Katte thanked the police officers. He takes off “the hat to the fact that our colleagues have remained calm despite continuous insults and increased aggressive mood.” That is “impressive and deserves recognition.”
