The establishment of the AfD’s new youth organization has triggered demonstrations in Giessen. Road blockades, skirmishes and police interventions dominated Saturday’s events in the city.
Large crowds of demonstrators gathered in the central German university city of Giessen on Saturday to protest the establishment of a new youth organization of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party. Its founding congress thus began with a delay of more than two hours, reports TASR according to the agencies DPA and AP.
Due to road blockades and protests, many of the roughly 1,000 planned participants could not get to the convention venue. AfD co-presidents Alice Weidelová and Tino Chrupalla, as well as the designated head of the new youth organization Jean-Pascal Hohm, were also stuck upon arrival.
Demonstrators had clashes with the police
The new organization will replace the Young Alternative (JA), which the authorities classified as a right-wing extremist organization in 2023. It was loosely associated with the AfD and was disbanded this year. The successor organization, with the expected name Generation Nemecko, will be part of the AfD structures, and its members should generally also be members of the party, which will thus gain more influence, DPA explains. AP adds that parties in Germany usually have youth wings, which are generally more politically radical than the parties themselves.
During Saturday’s protests in Giessen, clashes between demonstrators and police officers were also reported. They used pepper spray at one point against people throwing stones and water cannons at another to loosen the blockade, whose 2,000 participants refused calls to leave. According to the German Confederation of Trade Unions (DGB), about 20,000 people took part in the biggest demonstration. The police have not yet commented on the number of participants, but according to their spokesperson, the total number was lower than five digits.
Giessen has approximately 90,000 inhabitants, of which more than a third are university students. The local hospital reported that ten people with minor injuries sought treatment on Saturday, and the police also spoke about several injured members.
