Peasant protest in Dresden: Farmers take a breath of their anger and refuse the Green Minister the dialogue

Peasant protest in Dresden: Farmers take a breath of their anger and refuse the Green Minister the dialogue

Dresden. The Saxon Minister of Agriculture Wolfram Günther (Greens) leaves the theater square when the rally hardly started. Thousands of farmers have been poured into the old town of Dresden since Wednesday morning to clear their anger. They want to send a sign against the Federal Government's reduction policy, which the farmers should feel. Her tractors park on cobblestones on the Semperoper, clog the streets to the state parliament and are parked on the sidewalk. The horns of their vehicles sound every few seconds: out of anger, out of anger, in protest. At least that sees and hears Minister Günther. But he shouldn't speak to the farmers.

The Saxon State Farmers' Association organized the protest. It has been clear for days that Prime Minister Michael Kretschmer (CDU) will address the word to the demonstrators. However, he should remain the only political actor. The farmers would most likely not to speak well on Günther anyway. His ministry has announced that EU funds in Saxony cannot be paid out as usual at the end of December. Since then, there have been demands for resignation from the peasantry. The dialogue between the minister and the industry has already been better.

Farmers' association says green minister

On Tuesday, Günther invited to an industry discussion in his ministry. He wanted to look for the exchange with the farmers, wanted to hear how he could support them, looking for joint solutions. The state farmers' association did not come and canceled. The invitation was too short -term. Instead, the minister sat at the table with the Working Group on the table with the Working Group. And he decided to get an idea of the demonstration on Wednesday.

Günther is on the edge of the theater square, briefly holds a chat with a farmer, is ready for quotes and television recordings. The acting of the federal government is anything but well thought out, he says. He has "great understanding" for the resentment of the farmers. They need a perspective, should no longer be so dependent on public payments. It is the attempt by a signal: Günther does not want to give up dialogue with the farmers. It has been clear for days who the farmers have chosen as their addressee in the state government: Michael Kretschmer.

Kretschmer is a reputation as a traffic light critic

The Saxon Prime Minister had already stood on the farmers' side at the end of the year when it was clear that the EU money in Saxony did not flow as before. On the name of the state government, Kretschmer explicitly apologizes again on the theater square. Since the peasant anger flare up to the traffic lights, he has warned anyway to take the trouble from the agricultural businesses seriously and defended the farmers against criticism. He emphasizes this when he enters the stage and addresses the word to the demonstrators: "I fight for the interests you have justified." The Federal Government must finally have a view.

Kretschmer is in his element afterwards. He lives up to his reputation as one of the highest critics of the traffic light government. On some occasions, he defended Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) and discovered similarities with Federal Minister of Economics Robert Habeck (Greens). But in the Saxon election year - a new state parliament is elected on September 1 - Kretschmer sounds more fundamental. The federal government must change: "Politics must not divide. Politics must combine." He expects Berlin to talk about agricultural policy for talks. It has to be about the energy prices, the same way - everything that has denounced Kretschmer for months.

farmers are limited from right -wing extremists

On stage you can thanks Kretschmer for his words, even if the farmers' representatives at the microphone persuade him for another minutes. The spark hardly jumps over in the ranks of the demonstrators. People are skeptical when the prime minister speaks. Some acknowledge his statements with rating comments. However, the mood is only aggressive. Bow calls fall, it is whistled. But this is limited, although the right -wing extremists "Free Saxony" had called in advance to disturb the speech of the Prime Minister.

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With a view to the protest week of the farmers, the question has generally been asked to what extent right -wing extremists try to undermine the protests. Farmers reacted increasingly to the topic. Christian Hoffmann, however, understands the concerns. The farmer from near Delitzsch did not open the tractor to Dresden, but put his colleague in a coach early in the morning. "We have to expect right -wing extremists," he says, and tells how the farmer's association has prepared: Folders were explained in training what groups, symbols and sayings should not necessarily appear on the demonstration.

striking tractors are rejected

Apparently with success: In the state capital there are trekkers on which a gallows are mounted, trucks on which the Iron Cross is emblazoned or the call "Watches", deposits with a Germany flag. However, they are sorted out and may only park at a sufficient distance from the demo. At the rally, the farmers successfully keep the “Free Saxons” at a distance. While the group around Max Schreiber dominated the inner city with thousands on Monday, they shrunk to a small group on the edge of the theater square.

If you try to switch over to the rally with posters or flags, the police will return. The distancing of clearly right -wing actors succeeds. Nevertheless, their rhetoric finds their way onto the stage: for example when Kathrin Kühne seizes the microphone. Your speech is hardly about the concerns of the farmers, but about the "looting" of our values. She is ashamed, says Kühne, that "national pride is no longer socially acceptable" and reminds her listeners of the "right of resistance". Kühne gets a lot of cheers and applause for her words. Another speaker feels reminded of the peaceful revolution of 1989 and seems to forget that he does not live in a dictatorship.

lvz