Climate activists from the “Last Generation” group again blocked important motorway access roads in Berlin on Monday morning. The police spoke of six locations that were only partially cleared by late morning. The traffic information center warned of disabilities. Demands for harsher measures against the protests were raised again. The police union advocated the option of detention for up to seven days.
The “last generation” has been demonstrating almost every day for almost a year for a radical climate change – with blockades on streets where activists stick themselves to the roadway, but also in museums, football stadiums, ministries and on the runways of airports. The group itself reported on Monday that driveways had been blocked in five places in Berlin; In addition, a 72-year-old man chained himself to a gantry over a motorway.
For better climate protection, the group is calling for a speed limit of 100 km/h on motorways, a nine-euro ticket and a general move away from fossil fuels such as oil, gas and coal. The evangelical bishop Christian Stäblein called on the rbb24 Inforadio to deal more with the concerns and to start a conversation. That does not mean that breaking the law is legitimate. But society has shown a certain sluggishness when it comes to climate protection.
CDU faction leader Kai Wegner, on the other hand, called for a hard line. Munich is consistently taking action against the “climate glue”. There, their protest actions are prohibited on roads that are important for rescue services, on bridges or on highways. “The Berlin Senator for the Interior should order the same thing in Berlin,” explained Wegner. The activists disrupted “traffic in a life-threatening manner” and were “a danger to Berliners”.
The police union also said it was the job of politicians to ensure social peace. “These daily blockages of important traffic arteries in the capital must come to an end,” said spokesman Benjamin Jendro. “The possibility of detention for four or seven days would do its part and prevent our colleagues from having to go out every day in all weathers with citizen-friendly communication and plenty of cooking oil.” The cooking oil is used to loosen the adhesive on the road.
According to the police, the activists can currently be taken into custody for up to 48 hours as a precaution. In Bavaria, such preventive arrest is possible for up to 30 days. This long deadline has sparked a debate on proportionality. The activists understand their protest as non-violent civil disobedience, but they arouse great displeasure from those affected and sometimes cause dangerous situations in traffic
