Thousands of people took to the streets in Berlin and more than 30 other German cities on Saturday, joining a growing wave of student-led protests across Europe over rising living costs, education cuts and military conscription.
The demonstration at Platz des 18 Maerz, west of Berlin’s iconic Brandenburg Gate, brought together people from different generations on a sunny but chilly afternoon, reports Al Jazeera.
The crowd included anti-fascist activists wearing keffiyehs and smoking hand-rolled cigarettes, students dressed in Halloween costumes, and elderly women wearing “omas gegen rechts” (grandmothers against the right) badges.
Camera crews also gathered ahead of the rally, which began at 2pm (13:00 GMT).
The demonstrations were organised by a loose alliance called Gen Z Regelt (Gen Z sorts it). By Saturday morning, nearly 180,000 people across 34 cities had registered to participate, with major rallies planned in Frankfurt, Cologne, Munich and Berlin.
German police estimated that around 5,000 people joined the Berlin demonstration, while the alliance claimed on social media that the turnout reached 10,000.
Across the country, organisers said more than 100,000 people participated, German news agency dpa reported.
Thousands streamed into the Berlin square to hear speakers, and the gathering remained largely peaceful.
However, clashes broke out between protesters and police in the western city of Cologne, where officers intervened to contain a march.
Organisers identified six major issues behind Saturday’s demonstrations, including the rising cost of living, cuts to education funding and military conscription.
Political failure’ of government
Students told Al Jazeera they were increasingly frustrated by cuts to public funding, particularly for education, while the government continued to invest heavily in the military.
However, they also expressed hope, encouraged by student demonstrations taking place across Europe in recent weeks.
Veronika Dinter travelled overnight from Hannover to Berlin on Friday to join the rally.
The 23-year-old political science student said she had to take a part-time job to cover the cost of her studies because of the rising cost of living.
“I wanted to start studying to develop critical thinking and learn something new, but I didn’t realise how much it would cost to do so. I think this is something a lot of people in my generation are experiencing right now,” she said.
“Funding for education and social services are being cut, while the cost of living keeps rising. Universities are struggling, institutes are closing, teachers are losing their jobs and education facilities are literally falling apart.
“This crisis is the political failure of our government. And instead of solving it, Chancellor Friedrich Merz and his rich friends are funding the military with billions of euros.”
Emma Heymann, a 24-year-old student based in Berlin, shared similar concerns.
“Our generation feels very angry at the government because they are making these huge cuts that are affecting our quality of life here. And at the same time, they are spending billions on the military and spending money to fund the genocide in Gaza,” she said.
Protesters should be ‘listened to’
Phil Tziartzianis travelled eight hours from his hometown of Kassel to attend the demonstration with his friend Jan Chrominski and other young people.
“It feels important for me to be here among other young people who feel the same way,” he said.
The German protests are part of a wider wave of demonstrations that have swept across Europe in recent weeks, including in France, Belgium, Italy, Spain and Serbia.
Kilian Hampel, a senior research fellow at the Future of Work Lab at the University of Konstanz, said demonstrations elsewhere in Europe were also influencing young people in Germany.
“The frustration itself has been building for years, but this is definitely part of a wave we are seeing across Europe, and young people here are feeling that they can actually take their worries and problems to the streets,” he said.
“Many of their concerns, in particular around poor educational infrastructure, are legitimate, and it’s important that they are listened to.”
The Berlin rally continued for several hours before another demonstration, organised by a separate alliance, began in another part of the capital at around 5:30pm (16:30 GMT).
In a statement, Berlin police reported a few minor incidents during the day, including the use of pyrotechnics, but said the demonstrations remained largely peaceful.
Political figures had expressed concerns over the possibility of violence at the protests in the days leading up to the rallies.
However, demonstrators argued that focusing on potential violence would divert attention from the issues they wanted to highlight.
“We urge the police to not confront our demonstrations with any kind of violence,” Dinter, the student from Hannover, said.
“We stand in solidarity with all the people around the world who are fighting for an affordable life, for more investment in the education system, and against wars and military buildup.”
