- At the “SVP bi de Lüt in Basel” event, there was a counter-demonstration by the “Basel Nazifrei” group on Saturday.
- The police were on site with a large contingent and used rubber bullets against the approximately 30 demonstrators.
- The police wanted to mark their presence today, explains SRF domestic correspondent Catherine Thommen in Basel.
The square had already been cleared before noon: “The SVP event is over and the counter-demonstrators have also withdrawn,” reports SRF correspondent Catherine Thommen.
There were various reasons why the mood was so charged: “There have already been voices that have described Basel-Stadt as an SVP-free zone. Of course, that’s not entirely true: the SVP has representatives at the cantonal level. At national level, on the other hand, her last national councilor was voted out in 2019.” In addition, there has long been a discussion in Basel about how the police behave during demonstrations. “She is accused of not taking enough action on left-wing violence,” says Thommen.
Legend:
The police used rubber bullets.
SRF
In Basel-Stadt there was also massive damage to property during the May 1st demonstration this year. “The police chief said afterwards that they wanted to take tougher action. And that’s where you wanted to show your presence today.” But one shouldn’t forget that the big names of the SVP were in Basel today, with Federal Councilor Ueli Maurer, SVP National Councilor Magdalena Martullo-Blocher and party leader Marco Chiesa.
A total of around 150 people were at the party’s stand.