Germany "Discussion on Mandatory Vaccination Begins"... Large-Scale Protests Nationwide

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Cho Hyun-ui] On the 8th (local time), protests against COVID-19 vaccination and strengthened quarantine measures continued in Germany.

According to the daily Tagesspiegel on the 8th (local time), about 16,000 people gathered in Hamburg under the slogan "Enough is enough. Leave the children alone" and took to the streets in protest.

The organizers asked participants to wear masks and practice social distancing, but the police reported that many participants neither wore masks nor maintained social distancing.

Tagesspiegel reported, "One participant wore the Star of David, a symbol of Judaism, on their clothes with the label 'unvaccinated,' and the police are investigating on charges of incitement."

In Berlin, a procession of cars and bicycles protesting against COVID-19 quarantine measures continued. The police counted about 200 participants with 70 cars and 100 bicycles.

In Zwoenitz, the day before, protest participants opposing COVID-19 quarantine measures set fire to smoke bombs and torches and threw them at the police.

Regarding this, German Health Minister Karl Lauterbach said in an interview with Welt am Sonntag on the same day, "The discussions by vaccine opponents or COVID-19 deniers have lost their sense and purpose."

Minister Lauterbach pointed out, "A very small group dismisses all academic insights as nothing and voluntarily tries to enter a bluff that appears to be the truth," calling it "a new and unsettling development."

The German government is pushing for mandatory COVID-19 vaccination within the first quarter of this year. B?rbel Bas, Chairwoman of the German Bundestag (Social Democratic Party), urged to start discussions on mandatory COVID-19 vaccination in the Bundestag within this month.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz also said the day before, "Since all 16 state premiers support mandatory vaccination, we will proceed with the vaccination mandate as planned."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.