Tens of thousands at protests in Vienna, peaceful demonstration in Innsbruck
Shortly before the nationwide lockdown came into force, opponents of the measures against the corona pandemic called for demonstrations.
© APA / FLORIAN WIESER
Vienna, Innsbruck – It was the expected mass demonstration that largely paralyzed downtown Vienna on Saturday. Lateral thinkers, anti-vaccination opponents, right-wing extremists and critics of the federal government close to the FPÖ demonstrated together against the corona measures. “We are the people”, they chanted over and over again in chants. The police spoke of 35,000 people, most of whom marched peacefully on the Ringstrasse, the FPÖ even counted 100,000 participants.
Press statement on Corona demos planned
Interior Minister Karl Nehammer (ÖVP) and the Vienna State Police Vice President Franz Eigner will give a press statement on the meetings on Saturday at 10.30 a.m. today.
📽️ Video | Use of tear gas at a demonstration in Vienna
But the mood was always very aggressive in between. In the run-up to this, “civil war” was written on social media, FPÖ boss Herbert Kickl, who himself was in corona quarantine, even spoke of the government’s “dictatorship”. At a rally on the Human Rights Square in front of the Museum Quarter, Kickl was switched on by video.
The police controls were largely peaceful.
© APA / FLORIAN WIESER
Ten demonstrators were arrested by late afternoon, one of whom tried to snatch the gun from a police officer. There were also at least ten advertisements under the Nazi Prohibition Act. Several activists, for example, wore yellow stars leaning against the Star of David with the inscription “unvaccinated”, and posters with the wording “This is how it began in 1938” or “Schallenberg = Mengele” were held up. At least three people resisted state violence, smoke bombs were often detonated on the ring, and bottles and cans were thrown at officials and the freelance journalist Michael Bonvalot. Bonvalot reported on Twitter of attacks with pepper spray and projectiles by the extreme right, he had been threatened with physical violence in advance on social media. The convicted neo-Nazi Gottfried Küssel, identity boss Martin Sellner and right-wing hooligans mingled with the demonstrators. A large number of participants had also come from the federal states, including Tyroleans who wore the Tyrolean flag through Vienna.
1,300 police officers accompanied the large-scale demonstration, and executive helicopters also flew over the city center. The police repeatedly pointed out the mask requirement by means of a loudspeaker announcement. Protesters with masks were the exception.
Around 3,000 people gathered at Landhausplatz in Innsbruck.
© Böhm / TT
The demonstration in Innsbruck was consistently peaceful. The central concern on the posters, boards and banners: No to compulsory vaccination, resistance and freedom. According to the police, around 3,000 participants had gathered at Landhausplatz at 3 p.m. There were no riots or gross violations, only one or the other complaint against mask refusers was reinforced, according to Innsbruck’s city police commander Romed Giner. At the beginning of the demonstration, the organizers had pointed out the mask requirement, the police at least during the rally on Landhausplatz, observing it.
Around 40,000 people took to the streets in Vienna. The police checked numerous reports.
© APA / Wieser
At around 3:15 p.m., the demonstration marched off to the noise of whistles, ratchets, drums and lids in the direction of Museumstrasse, before returning to Landhausplatz via Adolf-Pichler-Platz, Anichstrasse and Maria-Theresien-Strasse. There was applause, but also critical looks and requests to speak from uninvolved passers-by and bystanders.
📽️ Video | Thousands of demonstrators in downtown Vienna
At the end of the event, the organizers could understand that they want to hold the demonstration next Saturday. (misp, np)