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| An estimated 2,500 supporters of the anti-capitalist group "Blockupy" demonstrated in the German financial capital of Frankfurt on Friday, blocking access to the European Central Bank in protest of euro-crisis austerity policies. |
Thousands of "Blockupy" protesters gathered in Frankfurt on
Friday, surrounding the European Central Bank to air their concerns
about euro-crisis policies. Both the banks and police were reportedly
well-prepared for the anti-capitalist demonstration.
An estimated 2,500 supporters of the anti-capitalist group "Blockupy"
demonstrated in the German financial capital of Frankfurt on Friday,
blocking access to the European Central Bank (ECB) in protest of
euro-crisis austerity policies.
Banging on drums and carrying signs that read slogans such as "Block the
ECB -- Fight Capitalism and Austerity" and "Humanity before Profit,"
the demonstrators cut off roads leading into the downtown financial
district.
"The business operations of the ECB
have been successfully hindered," a spokeswoman said, according to the
German news agency DPA. "We are making Europe-wide resistance to
devastating policies of poverty visible."
The European Blockupy movement, which formed after the Occupy Wall
Street movement in 2011, is critical of euro-zone leaders' approach to
the debt crisis. Forcing struggling countries to raise taxes and implement tough austerity measures has only served to deepen the Continent-wide recession, they allege.
Banks Prepared for Protest
As the protest got underway in the morning, riot police surrounded
the ECB building and took positions at other nearby financial
institutions, while a helicopter hovered overhead. A police spokesman
said he wouldn't necessarily characterize the event as a blockade,
however.
Banks in the area were reportedly able to prepare for the
demonstration, with many employees either taking the day off or working
from home. Some traders were also reportedly working from undisclosed
locations or provisional trading halls.
"So far, besides a few isolated incidents, everything has been
peaceful," a police spokesman told the DPA. Further protests were
planned for later in the day in downtown Frankfurt and at the airport,
Germany's busiest international hub.
The demonstrations are being held about one year after some 20,000
people took part in a similar event in the city, when police detained
hundreds of protesters. They also come ahead of Europe-wide protests
planned for June 1.
More pictures of the protest here
Source: Der Spiegel
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