At today’s “peace rally” by left-wing politician Sahra Wagenknecht and Alice Schwarzer, left-wing leader Janine Wissler does not want to be seen. Instead, several state associations of the AfD make their way to Berlin.
The party leader of the left, Janine Wissler, has criticized the call by her party colleague Sahra Wagenknecht for a “peace rally” this afternoon in Berlin with a view to the war in Ukraine. “I regret that the party was neither asked nor informed about this call,” Wissler told the newspapers of the Funke media group. She herself will not take part in the demonstration.
Several state associations of the AfD, on the other hand, want to travel from the east by bus to the rally in Berlin, as ntv has learned from circles. According to this, around 100 representatives of the right-wing party are to take part in the “peace rally”. However, the federal board should not be among those arriving.
Wissler warned Wagenknecht to clearly distance themselves from right-wing extremists. “Organized right-wingers have no place at the demonstration,” because “Never again war” and “Never again fascism” belonged inseparably together.
The rally called by Wagenknecht together with women’s rights activist Alice Schwarzer is highly controversial. The two had previously initiated an equally controversial petition, which has now been signed by hundreds of thousands of people, in which they call on the federal government to focus on peace negotiations instead of arms deliveries to Ukraine.
The leaders of the Left Party kept their distance, while leading AfD politicians signed the manifesto. 10,000 participants are registered for the peace rally, but the police expect more. Demonstrations for peace and against arms deliveries are also to take place in other cities such as Bonn, Cologne and Mainz. On Friday evening, however, on the first anniversary of the Russian attack on Ukraine, several thousand people demonstrated in Berlin for more support for the attacked country.
The SPD parliamentary secretary Katja Mast accused Wagenknecht and Schwarzer of serving Russian propaganda with their action. “The pictures of the demonstration on Saturday come in handy for Putin’s propaganda,” Mast told the Funke newspapers. “She will exploit the demonstration for her purposes. Everyone who is demonstrating on Saturday must know that.”
“Anyone who does not stand by Ukraine is on the wrong side of history,” said Federal Finance Minister Christian Lindner on Twitter. He accused Wagenknecht and Schwarzer of playing down the Russian attack.
