In view of the blockade actions by climate activists, CDU General Secretary Mario Czaja has called for tough action by the security authorities. “Just like hooligans, blockers should be taken into preventive custody consistently and for as long as possible before actions are announced,” Czaja told the “Welt am Sonntag” (“WamS”).
The newspaper, citing its own research, reported that activists from the group “Last Generation” had already blocked roads nationwide more than 200 times this year.
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Some of the activists got stuck and recently even concreted their hands in Berlin. According to “WamS”, Berlin registered 149 blockades, Hesse 34, Baden-Württemberg 17, Bavaria eight, Saxony five, Brandenburg four, North Rhine-Westphalia and Bremen three. Hamburg has registered 213 “actions” by the group, which, however, also include meetings.
In Berlin alone, 310 men and women were taken into custody and 67 criminal proceedings initiated. The Berlin public prosecutor’s office has now completed the first proceedings – they applied for penal orders in 17 cases at the Tiergarten District Court. The majority of these are fines.
In Berlin, the blockades have repeatedly led to significant disruptions in commuter traffic. The group is demanding more action from the federal government in the fight against climate change.
Last week, the last generation announced that they would suspend their roadblocks over the summer. However, the group threatened new campaigns in the fall.
A spokesman for the Federal Ministry of the Interior told the “WamS” that the department took the announcement of new campaigns in the fall very seriously. The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution is also observing a growing influence of left-wing extremists on the climate movement.