Police in Berlin said on Saturday afternoon that around 13,000 people had attended an event in Berlin-Mitte organized by a controversial socialist politician, Sahra Wagenknecht, and a prominent writer and feminist, Alice Schwarzer.
The organizers of the Rebellion for Peace rally have been heavily criticized by many politicians, including German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who say the demonstration could weaken public support for Ukraine’s fight against Russia.
Organizers had reckoned with a likely turnout in the region of 10,000, but police estimates exceeded those numbers despite freezing temperatures and sleet.
The renegade left-wing politician Wagenknecht, who has been criticized by party colleagues for her pro-Russian attitude, and Schwarzer welcomed the large turnout and repeatedly spoke of a “civic movement” or “peace movement”.
Some of the protesters carried more harmless banners or slogans such as “Make peace without guns”, others were more controversial. One seemed to compare Scholz and Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, who were now sending arms to the Ukrainian government at a time when previous dictators such as Adolf Hitler, Kaiser Wilhelm and Napoleon were invading the territory.
What is the Rebellion for Peace rally?
Saturday’s rally follows a solidarity protest with Ukraine that was attended by around 10,000 people in Berlin on Friday night – the one-year anniversary of the Russian invasion.
Police had previously raised concerns that the event at the Brandenburg Gate could be supported by far-right groups for their own purposes.
Two weeks ago, Wagenknecht and Schwarzer published a “Manifesto for Peace” which, according to the change.org website, was signed by more than 620,000 people.
The former chairwoman of the Socialist Left Party Sahra Wagenknecht (r) and the publicist Alice Schwarzer (l) were criticized for publishing their peace manifestoImage: Christian Mang/Portal
The two want to see “negotiation and compromise” on both sides of the Ukraine conflict to prevent it from escalating into a possible nuclear war.
Germany is celebrating Ukraine’s anniversary with rallies and protests
This browser does not support the video element.
What was said at the rally?
The crowd gathered at the Brandenburg Gate on Saturday afternoon to hear from the podium from a range of speakers known for some highly unconventional views in recent years.
Wagenknecht told the crowd their manifesto had caused “real hysteria” in Germany to refute it.
She often spoke of “hysterical roaring” in “parts of politics and the media” in Germany, “they are really afraid of us. They are afraid of a new peace movement.”
“It’s about ending the terrible suffering and dying of the Ukrainians. It’s about making Russia an offer to negotiate instead of supplying more and more weapons to an endless war of attrition,” said Wagenknecht.
Schwarzer highlights Baerbock
Schwarzer, meanwhile, said it was a “real shame” that there wasn’t room near the stage for all the participants.
“The word pacifist has become an insult, and from the left, imagine that,” Schwarzer said.
She said it was “really criminal to convince Ukraine that they can defeat Russia,” arguing that ultimately it was not possible.
Schwarzer also paused when a mention of Secretary of State Annalena Baerbock drew boos from the crowd, saying it seemed like her name could be “expected” to be dropped.
“A foreign minister is a diplomat by profession, the first female diplomat in the country. But what does this foreign minister do? It doesn’t seem to even be holding talks with Russia in this extremely dangerous situation, although one can only hope to do so secretly behind closed doors – but it doesn’t look like it,” said Schwarzer.
She said talks with Russia were the only way to end the war, even if Baerbock denied it, so “why not start the talks now?”
Former Bundeswehr officer and controversial economist
The first speaker on the panel, US professor and economist Jeffrey Sachs of Columbia University, joined via video link and spoke in English.
Known in recent years for his speculation that COVID is a US bioweapon mirroring Chinese disinformation, Sachs told the audience various questionable claims, which he described as “the truth” about the war. These included claims that the US blocked peace talks early in the conflict, that the “overwhelming evidence” indicated that the US blew up the Nord Stream pipelines, and that Russia invaded Ukraine because it was gave no guarantee that Ukraine would not join NATO.
And a former German military officer-turned-adviser, Erich Vad, dismissed criticism of the event as “naive” and argued that it better described NATO’s stance. Like most speakers, he said the conflict had become a “war of attrition.”
“What’s clear is that we’ve been supplying weapons for months, but we can’t think of much anymore,” said Vad. He said military aid must be tied to political goals, arguing that the latter are not easily discernible in the current conflict.
What is the reaction to the “peace” movement?
Chancellor Olaf Scholz told ZDF this week that he did not share the conviction in the peace manifesto.
“The Russian President currently accepts only one form of negotiation, namely unconditional surrender, which allows him to achieve all his goals,” he said.
Vice Chancellor and Economics Minister Robert Habeck insisted that “everyone who is sane wants peace”.
However, the Greens politician told ARD’s Brennpunkt that the organizers of the rally were trying to sell something as peace that an “imperialist dictator” is imposing on Europe, which would be an invitation to Russian President Vladimir Putin to invade other countries.
The centre-left Social Democrats (SPD) and the Socialist Left Party have also declined to take part.
Russian writer Viktor Erofeyev this week called the manifesto “not just naive, but stupid.”
“You have to understand something: the Putin regime is not far removed from Hitler’s regime. And let’s imagine someone had made a peace proposal to Hitler in the middle of the Second World War,” he told the Tagesspiegel.
mm, msh/rc (AFP, dpa, KNA)