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1h ago

Germany’s Top Court Affirms Law Against Blocking Permitted Demonstrations

The decision prioritizes the ability of a permitted march to proceed over a counterprotest intended to obstruct it.

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Das Bundesverfassungsgericht von außen
Sitzblockade, die Blockerienden schreien was die Stimmen zulassen
Zehn Jahre nach einer Sitzblockade gegen eine Demonstration der Piusbruderschaft ist ein zu einer Geldstrafe verurteilter Teilnehmer mit einer Beschwerde vor dem Bundesverfassungsgericht gescheitert.

Overview

  • The Federal Constitutional Court dismissed a complaint by a Freiburg counterprotester, leaving in place his 2019 conviction and fine for disrupting a march in 2015.
  • The ruling confirms Section 21 of the Assembly Act as constitutional, allowing punishment when a protest aims to prevent or grossly disrupt another permitted assembly.
  • Judges recognized that counterprotests, including sit-ins, fall under freedom of assembly, yet found punishment justified where the purpose is to obstruct the other event.
  • The case involved about 70 people forming sit-in blockades that halted a Pius Brotherhood march of roughly 100 participants until police cleared the route.
  • Critics, including the complainant and his lawyer from the Society for Civil Rights, argue the term “gross disturbance” remains vague and could deter peaceful protest (Case No. 1 BvR 2428/20).