Neo-Nazis to March Through Jewish Quarter in Berlin

A planned neo-Nazi demonstration through Berlin’s old Jewish quarter on Saturday has drawn loud protests and calls for counter-demonstrations from leaders of the Jewish community and leading city and government politicians.

Berlin’s already overextended police force is planning to send 3,500 officers to keep counter-demonstrators, including a variety of left wing groups, and marchers from Germany’s extreme right wing National Party of Germany (NPD) apart. The NPD, which is expecting more than 4,000 extremists from throughout Europe, organized the march to protest controversial exhibition at the Institute for Contemporary Art that criticizes German Wehrmacht soldiers.

Part of the march route will take them past several Jewish institutions, including the gleaming golden dome of the New Synagogue, one of Berlin’s landmarks, before ending at the Institute for Contemporary Art on August Strasse. The march, which takes place on the Jewish holy day, will go on while thousands of the city’s Jewish community are in synagogues praying.

Government spokesman Uwe Karsten-Heye called the march, organized by the extreme right wing National Party of Germany (NPD) an "intolerable provocation." He added that the government was fully on the side of the Jewish community and supported any peaceful counter-demonstrations.

Some such demonstrations already began on Friday. Rabbis have called on their congregations to sit down on the planned route and block the marchers. The group Europe Without Racism has called on people to amass in front of the Institute for Contemporary Art, so that police are forced to alter the neo-Nazis protest route.

Anetta Kahane, a spokeswoman of the Jewish community in Berlin, said it would be interesting to see if "police officers move Jews off the street in order to make room for neo-Nazis."

The march route was also an issue on the national level. The interior political spokesman for the Social Democratic Party’s parliamentary group accused Berlin’s city administration of having too little influence on the route marchers planned to take. The city’s interior cabinet decided on Thursday that the planned march could take place, but banned any sort of march music, marching formations and two of the party’s speakers.

"As long as the NPD isn’t banned under the Federal Constitution, they have the same rights as every other party and are allowed to march," said a spokeswoman in the city’s interior cabinet.

As with marches before, Jewish leaders warn of the effect the march will have, not just in Germany, but worldwide. The Simon Wiesenthal Center in Los Angeles has already written a letter of protest to the German government, calling the march inconceivable and criticizing the government for allowing it to take place.

"The effect of the pictures that will go around the world, will be devastating," said Paul Spiegel, chair of the Central Council of Jews in Germany.