More than 200,000 demonstrators gathered today in Munich to protest against far-right extremism ahead of the country’s general elections, with similar protests taking place in Hanover, Rostock, and other German cities.
At the protest held in Theresienwiese, where Oktoberfest is held every year, far more people appeared than expected, AP reported.
The protest organizer estimated that up to 320,000 people attended, many of whom carried banners against the far-right party Alternative for Germany (AfD), with messages such as “Racism and hatred are not an alternative.”
The protest, which remained peaceful, was supported by activist groups, the Munich Film Festival, churches, and Munich football clubs FC Bayern and TSV 1860, among others.
AfD, which has existed for 12 years, entered parliament in 2017, thanks to then-Chancellor Angela Merkel’s decision two years earlier to allow a large number of migrants into the country.
The far-right, anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany is currently polling in second place ahead of the elections scheduled for February 23.
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Source: Blic, Foto: Sven Opa/DPA