Tens of thousands of across the country this weekend as Germany’s peace movement held its traditional Easter marches — even as the presumptive next government under likely-Chancellor is getting ready to spend billions on rearming the country. The government is also seeking to boost the number of Bundeswehr recruits from the current 83,000 to 203,000 by 2031 with
German public opinion on war and peace is conflicted: Surveys by the Forsa research institute (carried out in March and April for media outlets RTL and NTV) found that while a majority of Germans (54%) fear that the country could get dragged into the , only one in six of the population would be prepared to fight for the country.
This year Easter marches themselves are very eclectic, with each of the 120 protests publishing its own demands that call attention to different conflicts around the world. But, according to Kristian Golla, who is helping to coordinate the demos through the organization Network of the German Peace Movement, there are a few key points common to all: The demonstrations all oppose the “excessive arms build-up in Germany and Europe,” call for more diplomatic efforts to end wars “especially those in Ukraine and ,” demand the dismantling of all nuclear weapons, and oppose the stationing of medium-range ballistic missiles in Europe.
“I think it’s important to point out that there are alternatives — that it’s not just about rearmament, rearmament, rearmament — is that the right path?” Golla told DW. “I think the politicians are trying to offer a solution that isn’t really a solution. Is it really true that once Russia has occupied Ukraine, they would then occupy half of Western Europe? I’m very unsure whether that is really true.”
Golla was also keen to underline that the German peace movement is not exclusively pacifist. “There are those who don’t fundamentally oppose the use of violence,” he said. “It’s the purpose of the movement to ask the question: What conflicts are there and how can they be resolved? Can conflicts only be resolved militarily or are there other points?”
Difficult times for pacifists
Olaf Müller, a pacifist and philosophy professor at Berlin’s Humboldt University, thinks that Germany’s peace movement is at one of its lowest ebbs in decades. “I think the peace movement is demoralized,” he told DW. “And one of the reasons is that if you take to the streets against militarism now you are instantly suspected of playing into Putin’s hands.”
It’s certainly true that despite this week’s protests, the German peace movement has experienced a drastic decline since its heyday in the 1980s, as the was slowly drawing to a close and freedom movements were spreading across communist Europe.
In 1983, for instance, some 4 million West Germans had signed the so-called “Krefeld Appeal,” demanding that the West German government withdraw its promise to allow medium-range ballistic missiles to be stationed in the country — one of the main demands of this weekend’s Easter marches, where only tens of thousands are expected to attend.
There’s a good reason for this hesitation: Germans are increasingly frightened of war, not least because of recent developments in the White House. “Germans are scared right now because they’re no longer sure that the security guarantee of the treaty will hold,” says Müller.
Müller believes that there are practical alternatives to military defense, and argues that if Germany were, for example, to reintroduce military service, as has been suggested, people should be given the option of training in non-violent civil resistance and civil disobedience instead of weapons training. Some Ukrainian towns and people have indeed practiced such methods against the Russian invaders.
What happened to the peace movement?
Annette Ohme-Reinicke, author of a book on the history of social movements, thinks Germany’s peace movement has been undermined by other worries since the end of the Cold War, when society began “looking away” from the issues of war and defense.
Now, she argues, Germans have become much more preoccupied with social concerns: The difficulties of inflation, the rise in rents, and simply trying to secure a living have engendered a new anxiety in the population. Meanwhile, she argues, an increasingly neoliberal economic system, and the individualism that comes with it, has undermined social movements in general.
“It’s a completely different mood than in the 60s and 70s,” she said. “I think that has made the population more vulnerable to issues that create fear and drives them to feel like they must join one side or another.”
Ohme-Reinicke also argues that there’s a growing disconnect between government concerns about national security and the population’s concerns about their own safety. “I think trying to bridge this discrepancy is currently a huge task for the peace movement.”
Polarization kills peace?
At the same time, Ohme-Reinicke sees a failure in Germany’s debate culture and more polarization, which has led to people being increasingly worried about being branded if they join a peace demo.
That is exacerbated by the fact that the (AfD), which, according to the latest polls, is supported by a quarter of all voters, has now also adopted a more pacifist stance towards Russia. Few in Germany’s traditionally left-wing peace movement wish to be associated with the far-right party.
For Müller, it is vital underline the alternatives to militarism, even in an uncertain world where people have legitimate fears of war. The key would be to be careful about what Germany invests in — if Germany must buy weapons, then they should be as defensive as possible: Air defense systems, reconnaissance technology, logistics that ensure Germany is able to get defensive troops to NATO’s eastern border.
Political scientists Klaus Schlichte and Stephan Hensell from Bremen University argue that peace research is not naive, but more important than ever: “As outrageous as it may seem at the moment, anyone interested in Europe’s stability will have to start thinking about initiating a new disarmament process now,” they wrote in the national Frankfurter Rundschau daily at the end of March. “The carte blanche for armaments, which was hastily decided upon, should actually be the reason for all experts to think about such solutions to the security dilemma. That would be the historical mission of peace research.”
Edited by Rina Goldenberg
This article was first published on April 19 and later updated to reflect the latest developments.
While you’re here: Every Tuesday, DW editors round up what is happening in German politics and society. You can sign up here for the weekly email newsletter Berlin Briefing.
The post What happened to Germany’s peace movement? appeared first on Deutsche Welle.
