Germany saw another wave of massive protests against the extreme right on Saturday, February 8, with authorities reporting over 200,000 demonstrators in Munich.
The latest demonstrations follow last weekend’s protests in Berlin, where approximately 160,000 people marched in opposition to recent cooperation between Germany’s conservative parties and the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) ahead of this month’s critical elections.
Munich police initially estimated the turnout for the demonstration, called “Munich is Multicolor,” at 100,000 but later revised the figure to over 200,000 shortly after it began.
With legislative elections just two weeks away, demonstrators gathered under the slogan “Democracy Needs You,” voicing concerns over any political party collaborating with the AfD.
Germany has long upheld an unwritten rule against aligning with the far right, a principle rooted in the country’s post-World War II reckoning with the atrocities committed under the Nazi regime.
Far Right AfD Party (Photo: AP)
However, protesters argue that the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), the frontrunner in the upcoming February 23 vote, has violated this so-called “firewall” by seeking parliamentary support from the AfD for an anti-immigration bill.
Organizers of the Munich demonstration, who claimed a turnout of 320,000, described the march as a powerful statement in support of “diversity, human dignity, solidarity, and democracy.”
Protesters gathered at Munich’s iconic Theresienwiese, a vast public esplanade in the city center, displaying placards critical of CDU leader Friedrich Merz, with slogans such as “Shame on you!” Meanwhile, another protest in the northern city of Hanover drew a crowd of 24,000, according to police reports.
Despite the controversy, the CDU has ruled out forming a government with the AfD, which remains the second most popular party in the latest election polls.
