Police banned far-right marches during Soccer World Cup!
German police and a German court on Thursday banned marches planned by far-right extremists (National Democratic Party of Germany, NPD) for the World Cup aimed at showing support of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s policies. He has cast doubt on the Holocaust (what is illegal under German law) and called for Israel’s destruction. NPD rallies were banned in the cities of Frankfurt and Gelsenkirchen which are both hosting World Cup matches. Another rightist rally in Herne, close to Gelsenkirchen (an economically-depressed western German city, suffering from similarly high unemployment and social tensions) was also banned, police said. Such a march would hugely damage Germany’s image. Local police chief Ruediger von Schoenfeldt said in a statement: "Gelsenkirchen police will do everything to ensure foreign visitors feel comfortable. We will not tolerate xenophobia." The march was part of "the NPD’s nationwide campaign during the World Cup aimed at vilifying dark-skinned players."
Threats to public safety were the official reasons given for the bans which were upheld by court rulings. Judges based their decision partly on information supplied by Italy’s interior ministry which said Italian neo-Nazis planned to try to provoke clashes during the protests. The NPD rally banned in Frankfurt was due to have taken place on June 17 - the same day as the Iran-Portugal World Cup match.
City officials said they feared clashes due the "high level of mobilisation of the leftist scene." It remains unclear if President Ahmadinejad plans to attend the World Cup. Jewish groups have called for him to be banned from entering Germany but the government has said the Iranian leader would be allowed to come to the World Cup.
But the NPD, which the German government tried unsuccessfully to ban five years ago, don’t give up. The German weblog fussballwmblog.de wants to try to ban the NPD "now"! Norbert Ordyk: "It’s a second chance! They threaten public security and damage Germany’s image! Let’s show them the Red Card!"
[…] The court overruled an earlier ban by a lower court on the march by members of the neo-Nazi National Democratic Party (NPD) in the western city. A state court in North-Rhine Westphalia had banned the event, arguing the that the march would pose "an immediate threat to public security". They believed it posed a high security risk as it coincides with the World Cup. […]
Fussball-WM Blog » Blog Archiv » Gelsenkirchen: Germany’s constitutional court allows neo-Nazi march! - Samstag, 10. Juni 2006 at 12:05 Uhr