Some 18,000 people have gathered in downtown Berlin on Saturday to take part in a rally against coronavirus restrictions but the police are not allowing the demonstration to begin due to violations of safety regulations related exactly to the ongoing pandemic
BERLIN (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 29th August, 2020) Some 18,000 people have gathered in downtown Berlin on Saturday to take part in a rally against coronavirus restrictions but the police are not allowing the demonstration to begin due to violations of safety regulations related exactly to the ongoing pandemic.
A spokeswoman for the police confirmed to Sputnik that approximately 18,000 people gathered in the Under den Linden avenue in the German capital's central Mitte district earlier in the day, but added that the law enforcement agency could not make estimates on how many people subsequently joined the rally. The spokeswoman said that the police are not allowing the protest to start because many demonstrators are not wearing face masks.
"We are working on the ground, and when it will become clear that the organizers can enforce the requirement to wear masks, then the rally can begin," the spokeswoman said.
Meanwhile, the Berlin police said on Twitter that the law enforcement agency has informed organizers that the demonstration can not go ahead due to safety violations.
Anti-coronavirus protests on Saturdays are organized by Stuttgart's Querdenken 711 initiative group that criticizes the government's response to the pandemic. The police have been initially against the Saturday rally due to fears that it would attract a massive crowd but later have allowed it under certain conditions that organizers would ensure compliance with safety regulations.
