Hundreds of neo-Nazis holding anti-migrant banners have staged a rally in a German town and clashed with police on Labour Day.
About 750 supporters of the far-right National Democratic Party and ‘Die Rechte’ (The Right) demonstrated under the theme ‘Greater justice for all Germans’ during a rally in Erfurt, central Germany.
Many were dressed in black and covered their heads with hoods, sun glasses and even umbrellas as they made their way through the town.
Police watched the right-wing protesters as they marched – and there are reports that an officer was attacked this afternoon.
Carrying a banner saying ‘we love our country but hate this state’, they were later met with a counter protest with campaigners waving ‘racists not welcome’ placards.
Hundreds of neo-Nazis holding anti-migrant banners have staged a rally in the German town of Erfurt on Labour Day
Supporters of the far-right National Democratic Party and ‘Die Rechte’ (The Right) demonstrated under the theme ‘Greater justice for all Germans’ during a rally in Erfurt
Many of the members were dressed in black and covered their heads with hoods, sun glasses and even umbrellas as they made their way through the town
Police watched the right-wing protesters as they marched. Pictured: A supporter of the right-wing NDP in Erfurt today
They were later met with a counter protest with campaigners waving flags saying ‘racists not welcome’.
The event comes as Germany, after a mass influx of asylum seekers since 2015, is witnessing a revival of far-right and ultra-nationalist groups and has seen the anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) enter parliament.
According to the German Trade Union Confederation, nearly 9,000 people took part in rallies on May Day in the Thuringia region.
Its regional vice chairman said its own protesters had managed to assert themselves against neo-Nazis and right-wing populists, according to local media.
The NPD has seen a sharp decline in its support base since the rise of the more moderate, right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD).
But it remains the main party for many neo-Nazis, who in Germany exist in various political subcultures, including so-called ’empire citizens’ (‘Reichsbuerger’) who refuse to recognise the German federal state, as well as neo-Nazi farmers and classic neo-Nazi post-skinheads
It came on a day when tens of thousands of workers marched across Germany and Austria rallying for their rights in the face of globalization.
According to the German Trade Union Confederation, nearly 9,000 people took part in rallies on May Day in the Thuringia region. Pictured: The NDP marching through Erfurt
The far-right protesters unfurled a banner saying: ‘We love our country but hate this state’
About 750 flag-waving neo-Nazis marched through the town of Erfurt, prompting counter protests
Party activists used umbrellas to hide their identities as they marched through the town of Erfurt
There was a heavy police presence and German police closed roads as the May Day marches took place in Erfurt
The event comes as Germany, after a mass influx of asylum seekers since 2015, is witnessing a revival of far-right and ultra-nationalist groups and has seen the anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) enter parliament
In Vienna, some 12,000 people gathered in front of city hall, some carrying banners with slogans against planned welfare cuts by the new government.
Meanwhile, around 4,000 union supporters marched on different routes through Berlin, before assembling at the German capital’s landmark Brandenburg Gate.
‘We have more rich and even richer people than we ever had before,’ said protester Aimo Tuegel in Berlin. ‘And, on the other hand, work and working conditions for workers continuing to get worse.’
In Nuremberg, where the German Confederation of Trade Unions, or DGB, held its main event this year, some 6,500 protesters cheered as the group’s leader, Reiner Hoffmann, said the unions ‘managed to civilize industrial capitalism some 100 years ago’ and would also be able to tackle contemporary challenges like digitalization.
The DGB said that altogether some 340,000 people participated in almost 500 May Day events across Germany.
There are reports that a police officer was hurt during a clash amid heightened tensions in Erfurt this afternoon
The flags of ‘Sektion Nordland’ and flags of the far-right NPD political party were seen as members gathered to march on May Day in Erfurt, Germany
The NPD has seen a sharp decline in its support base since the rise of the more moderate, right-wing Alternative for Germany
The NPD remains the main party for many neo-Nazis, who in Germany exist in various political subcultures, including so-called ’empire citizens’ (‘Reichsbuerger’) who refuse to recognize the German federal state, as well as neo-Nazi farmers and classic neo-Nazi post-skinheads