Following the demonstration by the far-right Identitarians, left-wing counter-demonstrators on Tuesday leveled accusations against the police, saying the executive branch acted “brutally, disproportionately and in some cases unlawfully”.
According to the left-wing counter-demonstrators, they were held by the police in the Herrengasse for several hours.
“Surrounded”
In a broadcast, an activist criticized the police action Saturday near the Herrengasse metro station. Protesters were “surrounded by police for hours without giving any reason.” “There was no way for them to go to the toilet or get food or water — and that was in the middle of summer,” the activist said.
271 identity determinations
The Vienna State Police stressed that 271 identity checks had to be carried out in this area because the participants of the counter-demonstration overturned police gates and allegedly threw stones and bottles at the police officers. Therefore, the identity checks had to be carried out on suspicion of resistance to state power and on suspicion of serious communal violence, in accordance with the Code of Criminal Procedure.
Police desk: “No restrictions”
However, police stressed that there were no restrictions on the scene. Those who were arrested had the opportunity to make a phone call. “If those who were arrested helped to establish their identity and reported this to the officers on the scene, they could immediately leave the boiler and go to a toilet,” the report said. “In the case of two medical emergencies, emergency services were immediately called.” The arrest of the group of people began at 4:30 p.m., police said. Ten people refused to identify themselves and were then taken to the police detention center (PAZ).
‘Sit-in participants arrested’
Another accusation of the protesters concerns the detention in the police detention center. “Participants in a sit-in were arrested and held for hours in the police detention center, even though they could only be charged with an administrative offense,” the broadcast said. The activist said that they were denied basic rights, such as access to medicines, hygiene products and external telephone calls. However, there are no such complaints at the PAZ, the police stressed when asked.
According to the board, 52 people have been provisionally detained under administrative criminal law. The last person was released from the police detention center on Sunday afternoon. There were 65 reports of administrative violations – such as sit-ins or failure to register a meeting.
The activist also criticized the police’s use of batons and pepper spray to stop a spontaneous demonstration. “This resulted in several injured protesters,” the report noted.
Police say masked people in small groups have tried to disrupt the march or the closing demonstration on Freyung several times and that weapons have been used. “The entire operation will be evaluated, just like any other large-scale operation,” state police said.
Source: Krone
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