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NEO-NAZIS

Local politician hits out at Norwegian police over Nazi march

City council representative Trond Blattmann has called police management of a demonstration by neo-Nazis in the town of Kristiansand of Juy 29th this year “useless”.

Published: 28 September 2017 17:15 CEST
Local politician hits out at Norwegian police over Nazi march
Trond Blattmann. File photo: Stian Lysberg Solum / NTB scanpix

Leadership of the local Agder Police District attended a meeting of local leaders in the town earlier this week to explain why they did not intervene during the march, reports the Fædrelandsvennen newspaper.

Local politician Blattmann, whose son was killed during the July 22nd, 2011 terrorist attacks by white supremacist Anders Breivik on the island of Utøya, unleashed a furious diatribe at the police representative, according to minutes recorded by Fædrelandsvennen.

“I am livid with you. You are offering legal terminology and excuses for what you did. I think it is shameful,” Blattmann said according to the report.

Police explained at the meeting that they did not have authority to intervene during the demonstration, in which 70 supporters of the extreme right Nordic Resistance Movement marched through Kristiansand’s main thoroughfare.

Police said that 50 of the demonstrators were from Sweden, 17 from Finland, and three from Norway.

“This was a demonstration of aggression, not free expression, and was exclusively intended to create fear in society. You refused to stop it. We will damn well not accept it anymore,” Blattmann, who represents the Labour Party, said.

Deputy Chief of Police Arne Sundvoll with Agder Police District said that he sympathised with Blattmann’s strong reaction.

“This is not something I or anybody else wishes to see repeated in the streets of Kristiansand. We made an assessment, and take the position that we must protect freedom of speech,” Sundvoll told Fædrelandsvennen.

READ ALSO: PM: Neo-Nazis can’t be allowed to ‘get a foothold in Norway’

DEMONSTRATION

IN PICTURES: Thousands take to Berlin streets in peaceful social justice, climate protest

Thousands of people marched in Berlin on Saturday for human rights, solidarity and social justice and against climate change in response to a call from the 'Unteilbar' (Indivisible) movement.

Published: 4 September 2021 22:51 CEST
IN PICTURES: Thousands take to Berlin streets in peaceful social justice, climate protest
Participants hold a banner reading "Stop the climate catastrophe" during a demonstration organised by the "#unteilbar" (indivisible) movement on September 4th, 2021 in front of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin. (Photo by Adam BERRY / AFP)

An alliance of more than 340 organisations and initiatives, including the German Children’s Fund, Amnesty International, Fridays for Future, the German Trade Union Federation and the Berlin tenants’ association, called for the demonstration, according to German newspaper Tagesspiegel.

At the end of the demonstration, police estimated that the number of participants was in the “upper four-digit range”, adding that people mostly observed hygiene rules and wore masks. Some 30,000 people had registered to attend.

The unteilbar movement’s motto is “For a just society based on solidarity”. (Photo by Adam BERRY / AFP)
Organisers of the march decryed the growing divisions in European society that they say are being fuelled by policies that accentuate the gap between rich and poor, which prioritise security over human rights and promote nationalism over inclusion.
The alliance called for “different political priorities” and a redistribution of wealth from the top to the bottom in a tweet, explaining that current policies strengthened inequality in many areas. 
The below picture shows a banner from ‘Wer Hat Der Gibt’, an alliance that says the rich should pay for the crisis.

Participants of the march hold banners printed with ‘No place for racism!’ and “People are not the same, but their rights are’. (Photo by Adam BERRY / AFP)

“We want different political priorities and don’t let ourselves be played off against one other,” said Unteilbar activist Anna Spangenberg, Tagespiegel reported. Those who have political responsibility must “finally tackle the climate crisis consistently and in a socially fair manner” and fight racism and misanthropy, she said.

The country needed a democracy “which guarantees real participation for everyone and which everyone can help shape”, she added.

Participants hold a sign reading ‘No Place For Nazis’ during a demonstration organised by the “#unteilbar” (indivisible) movement. (Photo by Adam BERRY / AFP)

A sign reads ‘Racism is not normal’, a reference to the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party slogan ‘Germany, but normal’ at Saturday’s demonstration. (Photo by Adam BERRY / AFP)

“I’m here today because I’ve been fighting for more hospital staff and fair wages for years,” said protester Dana, Tagesspiegel reported. “And I know that this is only possible together and in solidarity.” Another participant, Florian, said he wanted to “make a statement against right-wing parties” and “for human rights” before the general election.

The general election takes place in less than three weeks time and will see Chancellor Angela Merkel step down after 16 years in power.

READ ALSO: Who will replace Angela Merkel as chancellor?

Police officers working at the demonstration said hygiene measures were mostly observed and participants wore masks. (Photo by Adam BERRY / AFP)

A participant holds a flag reading ‘love music- hate fascism’. (Photo by Adam BERRY / AFP)

Participants at the “#unteilbar” (indivisible) demonstration hold banners, one reading ‘Solidarity is #non-negotiable’. (Photo by Adam BERRY / AFP)
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