Around 40 demo events were registered for today in Vienna, four rallies were prohibited in advance by the police, including two recent protests against the Corona measures and gatherings on the Middle East conflict. The executive still expected numerous demonstrators and was in civil and uniform with a large contingent on duty. The first arrests were occasionally made in the afternoon, but the situation initially remained calmer than it was before.
The inner city was partly a restricted zone: Around the ring between Schwarzenbergplatz and Schottenring / Franz-Josefs-Kai was closed to motorists. Traffic delays, traffic jams and lost time had to be expected throughout the city center. Motorists were urged by the ÖAMTC to bypass the city via the Gürtel or along the Danube Canal.
Meeting gazette known to the police
Some of the meeting gazettes are already known to the police and “the participants have committed criminal acts”, it had been said in advance, which is why it was decided to prohibit several demonstrations.
Demo against corona measures in Resselpark
One of the demonstrations around the corona measures started at 2 p.m. in the Resselpark. Demonstrators gradually began to gather on site. The police were also on site with a large number.
Announcements were made to “stay peaceful”. Chants could be heard over and over again. Attention was also drawn to wearing masks and keeping their distance. The Viennese police said that this request was followed relatively well.
Demonstration in the direction of Augarten
The demonstration route will eventually lead via Schwarzenbergplatz, Urania and Untere Donaustraße to the final rally in Augarten. The train started moving in the early afternoon. Apparently there were first incidents, as videos from krone.tv show on site – there were also first arrests. There were also several personal controls, including violent hooligans, it said. The event has been rather quiet so far, according to an interim report by the police in the afternoon.
Several hundred participants
The executive spoke of a few hundred participants. In the run-up, the demo route had already caused criticism in social media because it leads to the Jewish quarter. In view of the incidents on Friday in Mauthausen and the fact that hooligans, “lateral thinkers” and right-wing extremists could possibly also take part in the demo on Saturday – as in earlier demos – many had viewed this as extremely critical.
The Vienna State Police Directorate emphasizes to the APA that the event should be secured with enough staff. The situation would also be closely monitored to determine whether “certain groups of people” participate. In the event of anti-Semitic incidents, steps will be taken accordingly. At around 5:00 p.m., the gathering began to slowly dissolve.
Demo next to State Opera
Meanwhile, in the late afternoon, in addition to the State Opera, numerous participants also gathered to demonstrate against anti-Semitism.
A parade had also been registered, which wanted to march with around 1000 demonstrators to music in a demonstration train across Kärntner Strasse to the Donaupark from noon. The environmental activists from Extinction Rebellion had also announced a meeting at Urania that afternoon.
Two demonstrations around the Middle East conflict were prohibited by the executive in advance. This was justified with experiences from the past.