German Chancellor Angela Merkel visited a city that was shaken by violent, far-right protests three months ago and appealed to Germans not to cross a line when venting anger about issues such as immigration.
During a two-hour event with readers of the local Freie Presse newspaper, Merkel was asked repeatedly about the unrest that put Chemnitz in the headlines. Protesters held an anti-Merkel demonstration nearby.
“There are people who are worried that perhaps there are too many refugees here,” she said. “There are (also) people who have open prejudices against people who simply look different. You have to draw a line between these (two).”
The protests were triggered by the killing in August of a German man that authorities blamed on recent migrants. Far-right groups flocked to Chemnitz, located about 200 kilometers (124 miles) south of Berlin, their members mingling with residents expressing their anguish over the slaying.
Some in Germany — including members of Merkel’s Union bloc — voiced understanding for the protesters and said they shouldn’t be condemned for the violent actions of a small neo-Nazi minority.
Merkel made clear she thought otherwise.
“The line needs to be drawn. You can’t show understanding for everything,” she said, drawing a parallel with her experience growing up in East Germany at a time when the communist regime’s secret security police had a vast number of informants.
“I decided for myself, you don’t have to go to the Stasi to have a career, however bad the system is,” Merkel said. “And you also don’t need to persecute people because you’ve got a political gripe.”
Last month, authorities arrested seven people on suspicion of forming a far-right terrorist organisation calling itself “Revolution Chemnitz” and plotting attacks.
Senior Alternative for Germany leaders marched alongside known far-right extremists during one of the Chemnitz protests. The nationalists hope to win next year’s state election in Saxony, where Chemnitz is located and which is currently governed by Merkel’s party.
