Violence update 6.6.93
Debora Weber-Wulff
Arson caused quite a lot of damage at the home of a Turkish family
Friday/Saturday night. The mother, however, saw the attacker, and
was able to take her 5 children to safety. The incident occured in
Hattingen, a small town about 30 km from Solingen. No suspects have
been arrested yet, despite the woman being able to give police a
description.
The same night a Turkish restaurant in Konstanz, in the far south of
Germany, was burned completely out. No one was injured, as the
restaurant had closed for the night.
Also in Konstanz last night (Saturday/Sunday) there were two cases of
arson in houses occupied by Germans and Turks. In one case, the
inflammant was poured on the doormat of a German family that lives
next door to a Turkish family. The police at first thought it was in
connection with the fire the previous night, but are now considering
it just a "private dispute".
Yesterday saw demonstrations in many German cities, although
attendance was much below the levels expected by the organizers.
They were mostly peaceful, with some fighting towards the end. In
Solingen, where 12000 gathered, there was a rather intensive fight
with 15 injured police and 5 injured demonstrators.
Fifteen Turkish youth armed with gas pistols and electric shockers
made their way into the American Army officers club in Berlin-Zehlendorf
last night. They began shooting and screaming at the people there.
Two Germans and an American were hurt in the incident. The youth
disappeared before police could be called to the scene.
The three youth arrested in connection with the Solingen fire have been
remanded into custody. Two have given confessions. After they were
thrown out of the bar for fighting with two men they had believed were
Turks, but which were foreigners of an unspecified nationality, they
met up with the first youth arrested and plotted "revenge". According
to the confessions, the two 16-year-olds set the fire while the 20 and
23-year old were lookouts.
The NPD was forbidden to hold their congress near Passau on Saturday
afternoon and Sunday by the upper courts, which overturned the
decision of "Einstweiliger Anordnung"[whatever that is in English!]
awarded to the NPD by a lower court. This decision came very late on
Friday evening, and was greeted by the Bavarian minister of the
interior.
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In other news: [my husband says to include the news that Werder Bremen
is the new German soccer champion in a marvelous upset]
Kohl attended the opening of the rebuilt cathedral in Berlin this
morning. A number of personalities declined to attend because Kohl did
not attend the funeral in Cologne. The service was broadcast live on TV,
the sermon asked some hard questions, such as: was the money really
better spent on the 18-year refurbishment of the cathedral (started by
the DDR) instead of improving living conditions in Prenzlauer Berg?
The cathedral, built in 1905 and destroyed in the second world war, was
often berated by Easterners ("The best thing about it is the way it
looks when mirrored on the wall of Erich's lamp store = Palast der
Republik")
[I've been asked about the abortion debacle, so here's a brief note.
Please, no flames or rabid abortion discussions here!]
The higest court in Germany overturned the cross-partisian abortion
reform law that was passed by the Bundestag earlier this year. They
determined that abortion is not legal, but will not be punished if
a woman has counselling. Since the procedure is illegal, that means
that the health insurance does not cover the procedure. Many women's
groups have started funds so that poor women can obtain safe abortions,
and others are calling for the licensing in Germany of RU 486, the
abortion pill.
--
Debora Weber-Wulff, Professorin fuer Softwaretechnik
snail: Technische Fachhochschule Berlin, FB Informatik,
Luxemburgerstr. 10, 1000 Berlin 65
email: d...@informatik.tfh-berlin.dbp.de
Michel Fougeres
6.6.93 by Debora Weber-Wulff@math.
> Please, no flames or rabid abortion discussions here!]
[deleted]
Debora, thanks very much for taking time to answer. Michel Fougeres
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"The men who can manage men manage the men who can manage only
things, and the men who can manage money manage all."
Quoted by Will and Ariel Durant in THE LESSONS OF HISTORY.