Climate activists from the Last Generation group in Bavaria face up to 30 days in prison - even without a conviction. As soon as all of them are free for the first time in weeks, Munich also announces the end of stricter rules for their protests.
Munich (dpa/lby) - For the first time in weeks, no climate activists were in preventive custody in Bavaria on Thursday. "The last ones were released at 9 a.m.," said a police spokesman in Munich on Thursday. "Currently, no people from this context are in preventive custody."
According to the Bavarian Ministry of the Interior, 20 climate activists in Bavaria had been taken into preventive custody for a long time after protests in and around Munich and at the airport of the state capital, some of them several times.
Twelve activists were held for no more than ten days at a time, while one person had to stay in Stadelheim Prison for 30 days at a time. A ministry spokesman justified this with vehement, "repeated announcements that further criminal offenses would be committed". Such a long prison stay will "remain the absolute exception".
The possibility of preventive custody to prevent further criminal offenses in the Bavarian Police Tasks Act (PAG) is controversial. Several lawsuits were filed against the regulation, most recently by the left in the Free State.
Under the PAG, citizens can be detained for up to a month following a court decision to prevent the commission of an administrative offense of significant public importance or a criminal offence. This period can be extended by a maximum of one additional month.
Because of the adhesive protests by the Last Generation group, the city of Munich tightened the rules for such actions at the beginning of December 2022. According to this, the call for unreported protests in which participants stuck to roads relevant to rescue service trips was prohibited.
On Thursday, the district administration department (KVR) announced when asked that the corresponding general decree would expire after Sunday at midnight. "In the last few days it has become apparent that the activists are not carrying out any blockades - although the police only had some of the activists in preventive custody," the authority said. The last sticking action in Munich took place on Christmas Eve.
According to the police, no further actions are currently planned, according to the KVR. "Therefore, according to the current situation, there is no reason and no need to continue or extend the general decree." Should that change, the authority will check with the police whether consequences are necessary.
The Last Generation group recently announced that it intends to continue blocking roads in Germany in 2023. "We will continue to block highways in the new year," said group spokeswoman Carla Rochel. Activists from the Extinction Rebellion movement in Great Britain, on the other hand, have announced that they no longer want to stick to works of art and block roads in protest at the lack of climate protection.
