SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
20,000+ Police March In Force Against G7 Protests in Germany
Though more than 20,000 police officers were deployed to keep voice of the people away from powerful leaders, the critiques offered by demonstrators appear highlighted by the enormous efforts made to silence them
Jun 06, 2015
Though outnumbered by police by approximately two-to-one, thousands of people took to the streets of the Alpine resort town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen in Germany on Saturday to express their opposition to the hegemonic and neoliberal policies of the G7 nations as they gathered in a nearby luxury hotel ahead their annual summit which begins Sunday.
Speaking out against the destructive policies of the world's leading industrialized nations--which includes the U.S., U.K., Canada, France, Japan, Italy, and Germany--organized groups and individuals who participated in the protest carried signs and banners decrying inaction on climate change, the pending TransAtlantic Trade in Partnership (TTIP) agreement, ongoing wars and militarization, and the overarching assault on global democracy that has seen the power of corporations rise alongside nearly unprecedented levels of economic inequality.
Saturday's demonstration follows a larger one that took place in Munich on Thursday, during which tens of thousands marched beneath those same messages.
"I'm protesting because the big financial corporations have too much influence over politics," one protester, 50-year-old Thomas Schmidbauer, told Reuters on Saturday. "Poverty isn't being tackled. It is unfair. We could organize our economies much better for the people."
Protester Monika Lambert, meanwhile, told the Associated Press she had come "to exercise my democratic rights to say that everything the G7 decides is in the interest of the banks and capitalists."
Oxfam International accused the G7 leaders of offering empty promises and false solutions to the world's most pressing problems. It focused on the interrelated crises of soaring inequality and climate chaos.
"Today, 85 people own as much wealth as half the world's population," said Oxfam's Natalia Alonso in a statement ahead of Saturday's protest. "At least US$18.5 trillion is hidden by wealthy individuals in tax havens worldwide, representing a loss of more than $156 billion in tax revenue, money that could be invested in promoting equitable and sustainable growth and jobs. By not agreeing on next steps to end financial secrecy and tax evasion, G7 leaders have in effect shut their eyes to the growing problem of economic inequality."
Meanwhile, she added, G7 leaders continue to fail on the issue of global warming by offering some quality climate action--like emission-reduction pledges and renewable energy plans--on the one hand, "only to snatch it away with the other" by continuing to finance fossil fuels expansion elsewhere in the world and stubbornly refusing to embrace a truly transformational energy paradigm.
"Europe's dependence on dirty energy is pushing up fuel prices and driving climate change, which means higher food prices in Europe and across the world," said Alonso. "If leaders don't break their fossil fuel habit, poor people may be left to choose between eating and heating."
Speaking from the demonstration, Guy Taylor, a campaigner with the UK-based Global Justice Now, told the Guardian that his group was focused on calling attention to the far-reaching threats posed by the pending TTIP, a corporate-friendly pact that expresses the worst inclinations of global capitalism. "There is clearly no mandate for the G7 leaders to be pushing ahead with this disastrous trade deal," Taylor said. "TTIP may bring some economic benefits for a tiny handful of the business elite but for the rest of us it would mean compromising vital public services, the stripping of regulations protecting labor rights and the environment, and a dramatic erosion of democratic process."In a shocking show of force, news outlets report that the police presence was far larger than that of the sizable number of demonstrators. According to reports, more than 17,000 police officers were deployed in the area, with as many as 5,000 additional officers on standby or waiting on the Austrian side of the border.
According to the Guardian:
German police said they would carry out spot-checks at the country's borders, which, because Germany is a member of the Schengen agreement, are normally openly accessible.
Police had planned to keep all demonstrators away from the venue, which is in a tiny village five miles from Garmisch-Partenkirchen, but a court ruled that 50 protesters could be allowed inside the security zone, so G7 leaders would be able to hear them outside.
Simon Ernst, one of the organisers of the Stop Elmau demonstration, called the G7 leaders "the henchmen of bankers and corporations" and said that having just 50 demonstrators allowed to be near the actual venue was far too few.
"We think it shows an arrogant attitude toward freedom of assembly," he said.
On Twitter:
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
climate changecapitalisminequalityeconomic inequalitycorporate powertax havenspeople powerprotestgermanyclimate chaosg7
Though outnumbered by police by approximately two-to-one, thousands of people took to the streets of the Alpine resort town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen in Germany on Saturday to express their opposition to the hegemonic and neoliberal policies of the G7 nations as they gathered in a nearby luxury hotel ahead their annual summit which begins Sunday.
Speaking out against the destructive policies of the world's leading industrialized nations--which includes the U.S., U.K., Canada, France, Japan, Italy, and Germany--organized groups and individuals who participated in the protest carried signs and banners decrying inaction on climate change, the pending TransAtlantic Trade in Partnership (TTIP) agreement, ongoing wars and militarization, and the overarching assault on global democracy that has seen the power of corporations rise alongside nearly unprecedented levels of economic inequality.
Saturday's demonstration follows a larger one that took place in Munich on Thursday, during which tens of thousands marched beneath those same messages.
"I'm protesting because the big financial corporations have too much influence over politics," one protester, 50-year-old Thomas Schmidbauer, told Reuters on Saturday. "Poverty isn't being tackled. It is unfair. We could organize our economies much better for the people."
Protester Monika Lambert, meanwhile, told the Associated Press she had come "to exercise my democratic rights to say that everything the G7 decides is in the interest of the banks and capitalists."
Oxfam International accused the G7 leaders of offering empty promises and false solutions to the world's most pressing problems. It focused on the interrelated crises of soaring inequality and climate chaos.
"Today, 85 people own as much wealth as half the world's population," said Oxfam's Natalia Alonso in a statement ahead of Saturday's protest. "At least US$18.5 trillion is hidden by wealthy individuals in tax havens worldwide, representing a loss of more than $156 billion in tax revenue, money that could be invested in promoting equitable and sustainable growth and jobs. By not agreeing on next steps to end financial secrecy and tax evasion, G7 leaders have in effect shut their eyes to the growing problem of economic inequality."
Meanwhile, she added, G7 leaders continue to fail on the issue of global warming by offering some quality climate action--like emission-reduction pledges and renewable energy plans--on the one hand, "only to snatch it away with the other" by continuing to finance fossil fuels expansion elsewhere in the world and stubbornly refusing to embrace a truly transformational energy paradigm.
"Europe's dependence on dirty energy is pushing up fuel prices and driving climate change, which means higher food prices in Europe and across the world," said Alonso. "If leaders don't break their fossil fuel habit, poor people may be left to choose between eating and heating."
Speaking from the demonstration, Guy Taylor, a campaigner with the UK-based Global Justice Now, told the Guardian that his group was focused on calling attention to the far-reaching threats posed by the pending TTIP, a corporate-friendly pact that expresses the worst inclinations of global capitalism. "There is clearly no mandate for the G7 leaders to be pushing ahead with this disastrous trade deal," Taylor said. "TTIP may bring some economic benefits for a tiny handful of the business elite but for the rest of us it would mean compromising vital public services, the stripping of regulations protecting labor rights and the environment, and a dramatic erosion of democratic process."In a shocking show of force, news outlets report that the police presence was far larger than that of the sizable number of demonstrators. According to reports, more than 17,000 police officers were deployed in the area, with as many as 5,000 additional officers on standby or waiting on the Austrian side of the border.
According to the Guardian:
German police said they would carry out spot-checks at the country's borders, which, because Germany is a member of the Schengen agreement, are normally openly accessible.
Police had planned to keep all demonstrators away from the venue, which is in a tiny village five miles from Garmisch-Partenkirchen, but a court ruled that 50 protesters could be allowed inside the security zone, so G7 leaders would be able to hear them outside.
Simon Ernst, one of the organisers of the Stop Elmau demonstration, called the G7 leaders "the henchmen of bankers and corporations" and said that having just 50 demonstrators allowed to be near the actual venue was far too few.
"We think it shows an arrogant attitude toward freedom of assembly," he said.
On Twitter:
Though outnumbered by police by approximately two-to-one, thousands of people took to the streets of the Alpine resort town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen in Germany on Saturday to express their opposition to the hegemonic and neoliberal policies of the G7 nations as they gathered in a nearby luxury hotel ahead their annual summit which begins Sunday.
Speaking out against the destructive policies of the world's leading industrialized nations--which includes the U.S., U.K., Canada, France, Japan, Italy, and Germany--organized groups and individuals who participated in the protest carried signs and banners decrying inaction on climate change, the pending TransAtlantic Trade in Partnership (TTIP) agreement, ongoing wars and militarization, and the overarching assault on global democracy that has seen the power of corporations rise alongside nearly unprecedented levels of economic inequality.
Saturday's demonstration follows a larger one that took place in Munich on Thursday, during which tens of thousands marched beneath those same messages.
"I'm protesting because the big financial corporations have too much influence over politics," one protester, 50-year-old Thomas Schmidbauer, told Reuters on Saturday. "Poverty isn't being tackled. It is unfair. We could organize our economies much better for the people."
Protester Monika Lambert, meanwhile, told the Associated Press she had come "to exercise my democratic rights to say that everything the G7 decides is in the interest of the banks and capitalists."
Oxfam International accused the G7 leaders of offering empty promises and false solutions to the world's most pressing problems. It focused on the interrelated crises of soaring inequality and climate chaos.
"Today, 85 people own as much wealth as half the world's population," said Oxfam's Natalia Alonso in a statement ahead of Saturday's protest. "At least US$18.5 trillion is hidden by wealthy individuals in tax havens worldwide, representing a loss of more than $156 billion in tax revenue, money that could be invested in promoting equitable and sustainable growth and jobs. By not agreeing on next steps to end financial secrecy and tax evasion, G7 leaders have in effect shut their eyes to the growing problem of economic inequality."
Meanwhile, she added, G7 leaders continue to fail on the issue of global warming by offering some quality climate action--like emission-reduction pledges and renewable energy plans--on the one hand, "only to snatch it away with the other" by continuing to finance fossil fuels expansion elsewhere in the world and stubbornly refusing to embrace a truly transformational energy paradigm.
"Europe's dependence on dirty energy is pushing up fuel prices and driving climate change, which means higher food prices in Europe and across the world," said Alonso. "If leaders don't break their fossil fuel habit, poor people may be left to choose between eating and heating."
Speaking from the demonstration, Guy Taylor, a campaigner with the UK-based Global Justice Now, told the Guardian that his group was focused on calling attention to the far-reaching threats posed by the pending TTIP, a corporate-friendly pact that expresses the worst inclinations of global capitalism. "There is clearly no mandate for the G7 leaders to be pushing ahead with this disastrous trade deal," Taylor said. "TTIP may bring some economic benefits for a tiny handful of the business elite but for the rest of us it would mean compromising vital public services, the stripping of regulations protecting labor rights and the environment, and a dramatic erosion of democratic process."In a shocking show of force, news outlets report that the police presence was far larger than that of the sizable number of demonstrators. According to reports, more than 17,000 police officers were deployed in the area, with as many as 5,000 additional officers on standby or waiting on the Austrian side of the border.
According to the Guardian:
German police said they would carry out spot-checks at the country's borders, which, because Germany is a member of the Schengen agreement, are normally openly accessible.
Police had planned to keep all demonstrators away from the venue, which is in a tiny village five miles from Garmisch-Partenkirchen, but a court ruled that 50 protesters could be allowed inside the security zone, so G7 leaders would be able to hear them outside.
Simon Ernst, one of the organisers of the Stop Elmau demonstration, called the G7 leaders "the henchmen of bankers and corporations" and said that having just 50 demonstrators allowed to be near the actual venue was far too few.
"We think it shows an arrogant attitude toward freedom of assembly," he said.
On Twitter:
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.