Rallies for May 1st – Mostly peaceful rallies – Police break up Zurich Nacho – News

  • At the May 1st parade in Zurich, around 10,000 participants marched through the city center under the motto “Capitalism makes you sick”.
  • Around 2,500 people took part in the May 1st rally in Basel.
  • There was serious damage to property in Winterthur. Left-wing autonomous groups disrupted the procession.
  • In Zurich, left-wing autonomists gathered on Langstrasse for an unauthorized follow-up demonstration. The police surrounded the demonstrators and carried out identity checks.

May 1st is traditionally a day of international solidarity, the Young Socialists (Juso) write in a statement. You and the SP are two of the supporting organizations of the approved May 1st demonstrations in Switzerland.

Property damage occurred during the May 1st parade through downtown Zurich. According to the Zurich city police, masked people from the left-wing autonomous scene were responsible. They sprayed a UBS branch and a shop window of Chocolatier Läderach.

In general, the approved rally took place without “major incidents,” writes the Zurich city police. After 3 p.m. there was an unauthorized nacho by left-wing extremist groups in the Langstrasse district. The police surrounded a group of left-wing autonomists and later dispersed the demonstration using identity checks. More than 100 police officers are on duty. At 5:15 p.m. there were no reports of property damage in the Langstrasse area.

Juso: Upgrade vocational training and money for UNWRA


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Juso Switzerland collected signatures in various cities for a petition to improve the working conditions of young apprentices. In the first year of training, there should be a general minimum wage of 1,000 francs, ten weeks of vacation and an increase in scholarships for vocational training.

In solidarity, Switzerland should also double its contributions to the Palestinian civilian population. She betrayed the idea of ​​humanitarian aid by giving the money to the UN relief agency UNRWA. Instead of withholding the funds, Switzerland should immediately pay out 60 million francs to the Palestinian civilian population.

In Winterthur, demonstrators from the left-wing autonomous scene also disrupted the May 1st parade. In total, several hundred people took part in the approved parade. They drew attention to their concerns “loudly but peacefully,” said the Winterthur city police.

However, there was property damage worth tens of thousands of francs. Masked demonstrators from the left-wing autonomous scene disrupted the procession and sprayed countless sprays and ignited pyrotechnics along the entire route. Police officers found various pyrotechnic items and a bat in abandoned bags. According to the police, two 22- and 26-year-old Swiss women and a 23-year-old from Liechtenstein were arrested.

Things have been quiet in Basel so far

May 1st is watched with excitement in Basel. A year ago, the police stopped the parade shortly after it started and surrounded the front part of the parade. This police operation was heavily criticized by the left.

May 1st: a Swiss holiday or abolish it?


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May 1st should be a day off throughout Switzerland. This is what the Syna union is demanding with a petition that it launched today. The additional day off should be an act of appreciation for employees, writes Syna. May 1st is currently a day off in eight cantons.

The Young Liberals are making exactly the opposite demand. They are calling for the abolition of May 1st as a public holiday in all cantons. The young liberals wrote in a statement that the day caused chaos and property damage and was misguided in terms of content.

This year, May 1st in Basel has been peaceful so far. Those responsible estimate that around 2,000 people set off from the exhibition center. The unions were at the forefront – chanting their demand “wages up, bonuses down”. An SRF reporter describes the event as peaceful, loud, colorful – a significantly different picture than last year.

However, masked people also marched at a distance. Individuals lit petards and threw tomatoes at the police station on Clarastrasse in Basel.

In contrast to 2023, the police also seem to have significantly less presence. Uniformed officers were hardly to be seen, at most in side streets along the march route. This was what the organizers of the parade wanted, who met with the police for discussions before Labor Day.

In Geneva, the May 1st parade was dedicated to solidarity with the Palestinian population. 2,000 demonstrators marched through the city with posters and flags. The Unia union in particular called for better wage conditions. “A 1, 2 or 3 percent wage increase is not enough to live in Geneva,” chanted a trade unionist.

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