NEWS FROM BERLIN
Alleged racist attack on two children
In Berlin, in a fast-food restaurant, a man came up to two boys, a 12-year-old and a 13-year-old, and punched them, apparently for racist reasons. He then fled the scene, getting in the car and simply taking away. Both children complained about having a headache after the incident. The younger one was even taken to hospital for outpatient treatment. Since a racist motive for the assault could not be confirmed, the State Office of Criminal Investigation has therefore taken over the investigation, the police added. Source: welt
3G-rules will also apply on railway station platforms
From January 5 onwards, the “3G-rule” will also apply on railway platforms in Berlin. The Berlin Senate has extended such rules accordingly with the current Corona Ordinance. The checks are still to be carried out on a random basis. According to the Senate, the 3G obligation only applies on the platforms of S-Bahn and U-Bahn trains, but not in the other parts of the stations and also not at bus and tram stations. The rules are likely to be particularly problematic for homeless people seeking refuge from the cold in underground and suburban railway stations. Source: welt
NEWS FROM GERMANY
Corona measures opponents mobilise
Protest against government restrictions in the fight against Corona goes on in 2022. There were actions in several German cities – with a total of several tens of thousands of participants. In Rostock, for instance, some people tried to change the demonstration route and break through police barriers. This was prevented using “simple physical force” and batons, according to the police. There were also sporadic counter-demonstrations. In Dresden and in Leipzig, the police acted against supposedly unauthorised assemblies at several locations. Police in Magdeburg reported police chains being broken, bottles being thrown at officers and pyrotechnics being used. Source: dw
Germany’s arms exports rise to record level
The former federal government of the CDU/CSU and SPD approved arms exports worth almost five billion euros in its last nine days in office. This brings the total amount of export permits in the current year to a record 9.04 billion euros. Egypt is by far the number one recipient country. The country is criticized for human rights violations and its involvement in the conflicts in Yemen and Libya. It is worth reporting that the Economics Minister Peter Altmaier (CDU) informed the Bundestag only one day before Olaf Scholz was elected chancellor – but without specifying the value of the exports. Source: spiegel
Pensions remain low thanks to the FDP
According to a survey by ARD-Deutschlandtrends, around 70 percent of Germans do not trust the new federal government to secure their pensions. This unease is confirmed by the federal government’s answer to a question from the Left Party in the Bundestag over the weekend, according to which a third of workers in Germany currently face a gross pension of less than 1,300 euros a month after 45 years of full-time work. Meanwhile, the Social Welfare Association of Germany (Sozialverband Deutschland, SoVD) and the Left Party sharply criticise some of the pension policy plans of the traffic light coalition. Source: nd
