FC St. Pauli stand for a vibrant democracy - no ifs, no buts
Thursday, 06. July 2017, 12:57 Uhr
Our part of town is the focus of many protest actions against the G20 summit. We welcome this without reservation and are happy to see any kind of peaceful, creative, and noisy protest. Everyone has the right to say and display here and now what the organisers and participants of the G20 summit do not want to hear or see and everyone has an entitlement to the public space in which that happens.
Instead, we are seeing extensive prohibitions of assembly, a totally absurd ban on camps, and a massive police presence. Lawyers speak of being hindered in their work. The actions of the police are placing fundamental principles of the constitutional state in doubt. On top of this there are massive restrictions and no-go areas that are impacting on ordinary people and traders out of all proportion.
We therefore call upon those in charge and, in particular, the police to consider all citizens guests of the "Festival of Democracy", as the Senate dubbed it, to protect our democratic values, and thus to permit peaceful, creative protest.
FC St. Pauli stand for cosmopolitanism and diversity of opinion. Democratic values such as freedom of expression and assembly and the right to demonstrate are some of our highest goods and are worthy of protection at all times. When, if not now? Where, if not here. Who, if not us?
The managing and supervisory boards of FC St Pauli
