[Pressrelease] G8: Urgent appeal lodged against demonstration ban

[Presswork G8 2007 (english)]

G8: Urgent appeal lodged against demonstration ban.
If necessary, the 'star-march' coalition plan to take matters all the way to 
the federal courts.
G8 countries' foreign policies are given as the reason  for the "police 
emergency". 

Press Release May 18th 2007
[Gipfelsoli Infogruppe | International Press Group] 

All demonstrations in the vicinity of Heiligendamm have been prohibited 
under a General Ban issued by the German Office for Association. The grounds 
behind the fence and a 4 kilometre area around the perimetre of the fence 
fall under the ban. With this ban, the protests are to be held at a 6 
kilometre distance. 

The planned 'star march' is one of the initiatives that is affected by these 
measures. With the motto, 'taking the protest to Heiligendamm', the star 
march is intended to end with a closing rally in Heiligendamm. Today, the 
star march coalition is lodging an urgent appeal against the ruling. A 
decision is expected at the end of next week. "If necessary, we will have 
our right to protest confirmed by the federal courts", a speaker for the 
star march coalition said. The prohibited area stretches from the camp in 
Reddelich almost all the way to the camp in Wichmannsdorf. A speaker of the 
BAO "Kavala" has declared that a congregation of 3 people within this area 
is illegal under the ruling. "This means that we can't even leave the camp 
in groups of 3 and walk next to one another without the police breaking us 
up", says a camp participant of the WomenLesbianTransgender Network. The 
rationale for the ban, according to "Kavala", lies with the foreign policies 
of the G8 countries. A "latent threat situation" exists for the 
representatives of the G8 countries because of the wars in "Iraq, Lebanon, 
Syria, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Palestine". Even the German 
Government is perceived as endangered, because of its "increasing engagement 
in conflict regions". What is meant is the war in Afghanistan. 

Hanne Jobst of the Gipfelsoli Infogruppe finds this reasoning absurd: 
"Protest is forbidden because it would have negative effects for foreign 
decision-makers. The G8 makes decisions that affect the lives of millions of 
people every day, without the legitimacy to do so, yet in the opinion of the 
police, the G8 should not have to be subjected to these people's anger". 

Even popstar Herbert Groenemeyer has to admit this: "There is real anger", 
he explained in the German newspaper 'taz' the day before yesterday. 

Conicidentally, this week in Scotland, charges against five activists who 
were arrested and detained on their way to a closing demonstration at the 
conference hotel in Gleneagles during the 2005 G8 summit, were dropped. "As 
always during summit protests the police use arbitrary and often illegal 
measures to prevent protest from reaching those it seeks to criticise", 
Gerda Achterhuis of the Dutch Dissent network argues. "The move to ban the 
demonstration does not surprise us. However, we will not let ourselves be 
intimidated and will continue to mobilise for the star march and all other 
actions against the G8 meeting." 

Gipfelsoli Infogruppe: +49 0160 95314023
International Press Group: +49 160 92437902 

Background:
Public statement of the police department Rostock (detailed justification 
for the ban, 23 pages): http://gipfelsoli.org/Repression/1701.html