Thousands Protest in Munich Against 'Far-Right' Politics

Continuing the protests in Germany against the activities and popularity of parties known as 'far-right', the gathering of people in Munich this past weekend attracted the most attention. After around 160,000 people took to the streets in Berlin, the capital of Germany, last week, on Saturday, February 9, more than 250,000 people gathered in Munich to chant against the policies of such parties in the country. Meanwhile, the organizers of this gathering claim that at least 320,000 people participated on Saturday. The Munich gathering, with the slogan 'Democracy Needs You', took place two weeks before the parliamentary elections in Germany, amid fears and concerns that the far-right party AfD, 'Alternative for Germany', could increase its number of seats. The coalition government of Olaf Scholz, a center-left leader, collapsed last December following the withdrawal of the Free Democratic Party from the three-party coalition and the dismissal of the finance minister from that party, with early parliamentary elections scheduled for March 25. Polls in Germany indicate that the AfD could secure 19% of the vote, placing it second after the party led by Friedrich Merz. Germany's domestic intelligence agency, the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, monitors the AfD as an extremist right-wing organization. The AfD was formed in 2013 as a group opposing the European Union but gradually transformed into an anti-immigrant party. It has gained significant popularity in states that were previously under the communist regime of East Germany for 11 years. The AfD has achieved remarkable success in state elections in recent months, capitalizing on the very low popularity of Olaf Scholz's coalition government. According to AFP, protesters on Saturday warned all parties against cooperating with the AfD. Based on an unwritten law known as the 'firewall', since the establishment of the Federal Republic of Germany, democratic parties have refrained from cooperating with far-right parties. This is the same law that, according to protesters, Friedrich Merz, leader of the Christian Democratic Union, has violated by attempting to pass his anti-immigration bill with the help of the AfD. However, representatives of the German parliament, the Bundestag, rejected the controversial conservative parties' immigration restriction bill on Friday, February 1. Polls indicate that the AfD will secure 20 to 22% of the votes in the upcoming elections, following the Union party. After these two, the Green Party and the Social Democrats led by Olaf Scholz are expected to receive about 15% of the votes. Meanwhile, the 'Zara Wagenknecht Coalition' has also entered parliament only six months after its establishment. Ms. Wagenknecht, born to an Iranian father, was previously leftist but now criticizes both leftist parties and the AfD's policies.