Norbert Röttgen, the deputy chairman of the CDU parliamentary group in the Bundestag, has refuted remarks made by Federal Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt regarding the perpetrators of violence during recent youth-led protests. Speaking on the ntv program “Pinar Atalay,” Röttgen insisted that the violence was committed by “individual perpetrators, always individual perpetrators.”
While acknowledging that many of the violent individuals involved were either foreigners or Germans of foreign descent, Röttgen stated that this fact does not imply a shared social environment or community. He stressed that there is no singular migratory milieu in Germany. With this statement, the CDU politician distanced himself from Dobrindt’s assertion that the incidents were carried out by “chaos from the migratory milieu.”
At the same time, Röttgen emphasized the necessity of clearly differentiating between peaceful demonstrators and those who resort to violence. He argued that the right to take to the streets and protest is a fundamental aspect of democracy. However, he firmly stated that violence cannot be justified under any circumstances and requires the strict enforcement of the rule of law. Furthermore, he warned that perpetrators must be prevented from abusing the right to demonstrate enjoyed by peaceful participants.
