Demonstrations against the CDU and AfD: The fire wall crumbles!

Demonstrations against the CDU and AfD: The fire wall crumbles!

On January 30, 2025, around 6,500 people gathered on the Römerberg in Frankfurt to demonstrate against a stricter migration policy. The reason for the rally was the approval of the Bundestag for an application by the CDU to tighten asylum law. The demonstration received the motto "All together against fascism - real fire wall instead of the right arsonist". The call to participate came from the nationwide “opposition” campaign alliance, which includes local initiatives and unions. These protests took place at the same time for further nationwide demonstrations in which tens of thousands protested against the decision of the Union and the AfD.

The vote in the Bundestag, which took place on Wednesday, attracted attention to the CDU application for the support of the AfD. This was the first time that the CDU received a majority in the Bundestag with the help of the AfD. Friedrich Merz, the Union parties' candidate for Chancellor, received a lot of criticism for his decisions. Michel Friedman in particular, a former member of the CDU, commented negatively about the new political cooperation and announced his resignation from the party. He called the current situation.

wave of protests nationwide

The demonstration in Frankfurt was not the only one of its kind. In Berlin, around 6,000 people gathered in front of the CDU headquarters, although only 4,000 were registered. There, organizations such as Amnesty International and "pier" demonstrate under the motto "Brandwall instead of arson". The peaceful mood during the protests was confirmed by the police. Thousands also protested in other cities in Germany. In Kiel, for example, there were 1,500 people on the street, while around 7,000 demonstrated in Munich in Munich. In Freiburg, the police estimated the number of participants up to 11,000.

The CDU application for tightening the asylum law, which was assumed with 348 to 344 votes in 10 abstentions, was sharply criticized by the SPD and the Greens. Rolf Mützenich, Managing Director of the SPD, described the Union block as "broken out of the political center". Wiebke Judith von Proasyl warned of a "taboo break" that was triggered by the cooperation between the CDU and AfD and has the risk of fascism and authoritarianism.

reactions and political consequences

This political decision was made a few weeks before the early Bundestag election. Current surveys show Merz ’center-right union with around 30% of the votes at the top, while the AfD is around 20%. Scholz ’SPD and the Greens are further behind. The CDU had previously announced that it would maintain a "fire wall" to the AfD, which is now considered failed.

During the demonstration in Frankfurt, the meeting of the city council was also interrupted in order to enable the city council to participate in the rally. In Limburg there was also another rally with 220 participants under the motto "The fire wall is we". These events illustrate the tensions and resistance among the population against the new direction of migration policy, which many perceived as threatening.