The source for this story from earlier in the week is Revolution Now, so consider that as you read this news from Germany where “refugee” protestors have lived on the street for a year.

Interesting that Revolution Now says the Green Party district mayor believes the longstanding camp demonstration is being fueled by ‘Leftwingers’ using the refugees as pawns.  Emphasis is mine:

The refugeee protest camp at the Oranienplatz in Berlin is under immediate threat of eviction. Earlier tonight German police tried to evict the camp but activists succeeded in defending the camp. After the police operation there was an unauthorized spontanious demonstration which was attacked by police forces.

In the earyl evening hours police tried to evict the refugee protest camp at the Oranienplatz, a square in the Kreuzberg neighbourhood in Berlin. In the  afternoon district mayo Miss Herrmann of the Green party declared the end of the tolerance of the camp and asked the police to evict the square. Because of a fast and massive mobilisation activists managed to prevent the eviction tonight.

City officials have found space to house 80 inside (out of the cold).  They aren’t throwing them out into some German forest!  The protestors basically are demanding the right to live in Germany freely.

District mayor Herrmann was in the camp in the afternoon and spoke with refugees and their supporters. She was informed about the fact that the building where refugees could stay if they would leave the camp has a capacity of 80 people so at least 30 refugees had to return to the camp.because there was no place for them in the building. Furthermore there were refugees who made clear from the beginning of the negotiations about an alternative place to stay for the refugees that they will not even consider to leave the protest camp as long as their demands are not met. They demand an end of the so called “Residenzpflicht” which restricts their freedom of movement, an end to their placement in isolated camps and a stop of all deportations. Although Miss Herrmann knew that a big group of refugees had to and/or wanted to stay at the Oranienplatz she ordered the police operation.

Hermann: Radicals exploiting legitimate refugees!

Refugees stated tonight: “Since the negotiations started we valued the limited access to an alternative place as an attempt to divide us.” From the beginning of the talks responsible authorities were informed by refugees that leaving the camp is not an option for many people at Oranienplatz. Miss Herrmann reacted that the struggle of the refugees was being directed by leftwing radicals and that the refugees were exploited by them. With this kind of reaction she denies the ability of the refugees to act politically for themselves in a self-determined way. She is also participating in a media campaign to delegitimize the refugee protests. This media campaign aims to divide people in “good” refugees who will accept an alternative place for the winter and repress people who want to change the system and who are fighting for equal rights for all people and who are protesting at the Oranienplatz for mor than a year now.

There is more, with photos.

For all of our posts on the problems Germany is having with refugees and asylum seekers, see our Germany archive here.