Court support statemement
We are here today as members of trade unions and the labour movement, to stand in solidarity with those bearing the cost of shocking abuse by police in Germany over recent years. The court cases today are among some of the first stemming from the dramatic escalation in abusive conduct by police in the past 13 months, which have completely trampled on freedom of speech and freedom of assembly - both of which are supposedly core civil liberties in this country.
Last October 2023, the German government and the Berlin police effectively suspended these rights for Palestinians and allies of Palestinians, who have faced brutal attacks from police simply for gathering to mourn and raise awareness for the dangerous conditions unfolding in Gaza - in what by then was already clearly the start of Israel’s genocidal campaign on Palestinians in Gaza - which has done nothing but continue to grow and escalate in its brutality, severity, and scope - from Gaza, to the West Bank, to Lebanon over the past year, with the active participation and complicity of German, European, and U.S. political support and weapons.
The role that the German government and here locally, Berlin police, have played in opening up an internal front to suppress Palestinians in their right to come together to mourn for their loved ones, and to organize for the safety, dignity, and wellbeing of their families is an utter disgrace, and marks an alarming turning point for our society and civil liberties.
Today, a minor faces trial and criminal charges. Families sitting and eating at a chicken shop on Sonnenallee were harassed and racially profiled by police simply for wearing kuffiyehs and wearing symbols of solidarity with Palestine. Police continued to provoke individuals until the police officers found an excuse to escalate the encounter and use force against people who moments prior had been sitting, eating, and minding their business.
Over the past year we have seen countless examples of police using unprecedented levels of brutality and violence, as well as deeply alarming surveillance tactics, against people engaging in Palestine solidarity. These have always demonstrated a shocking level of selective enforcement and racial profiling, and a crude disregard for the checks and balances that are intended to protect society from government and police impunity and abuse of power.
Berlin is home to the largest Palestinian community in all of Europe, and disgracefully, the German government has been an active partner in the brutal assault on Palestinians. At the international level, the German government’s policy of continuing to arm the Israeli military - despite domestic and international courts raising the alarm that these are being used to perpetrate crimes against humanity - dangerously undermines the international post-war legal order. The police’s assault on civil liberties domestically mirrors this perfectly, and is an alarming sign of dangerous times. Although trade union leadership in Germany has been largely silent and complicit in arms production and military armament, rank and file members will not be silent. As trade unionists, we stand in solidarity with anyone fighting to exercise their right to gather and express their political voice and speak out, and we will always stand in solidarity with those fighting against abuse of power.
- Datum: 16 November 2024