Thousands of Germans gathered over the weekend in the western city of Solingen to commemorate last year’s arson attack by right-wing extremists that killed five Turkish women and girls.
“Violence does not begin with the throwing of inflammable objects, but with words which guide people to such acts,” said Ignatz Bubis, chairman of the Central Council of Jews in Germany.
Bubis, who was one of the speakers at a mass rally held at Solingen’s City Hall, appealed to Germany’s leaders to take “energetic” measures against right-wing violence.
Ceremonies were held both Saturday and Sunday, under the motto “Together Against Racism and Fascism” and climaxed with an estimated 10,000 people holding hands in a chain which stretched from the site of the fatal attack to a memorial erected in memory of those killed.
Johannes Rau, the premier of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, who ran unsuccessfully in the German presidential elections last week, was a key speaker at one of the rallies.
He urged the German people to show “civilian courage” in the face of rising right-wing nationalism.
The 16-year-old sister of two of the victims also addressed the crowd. “I’ve never felt hatred for you,” Fadimeh Gene said.
The ceremonies were held under tight security arrangements. Police searched more than 15,000 cars entering the city for weapons in an effort to avoid possible clashes between anti-right demonstrators and rightist activists. Thirty passengers were prevented from entering the city.
Four German youths face trial for the deadly arson attack.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
