protest in Solingen By Hans-Jurgen Schultz HUNDREDS of thousands of people staged spontaneous demonstratons in cvery major German town in response to the murder of five Turkish women and young girls in Solingen last weekend, in the biggest outburst of public anger yet seen.
For the first time these demonstrations involca tens of thousands of Turkish workers.
The murders came just two days aller the crman pariament (Bundestag) passed a new law, with the support of both major parties - the right wing CDU and the Social Democrats (SPD)- aimod at drastically reducing immigration into Germany, to a maximum of 10,000 cach year.
Kohl in retreat
The new anti-immigration law is widely seen as a capitulation to racism and having given intensify their attacks. Thus Chancellor Kohl, despite his attacks on the 'violence of Turkish demonstrators, has been pushed onto the defensive.
His government is now talking of allowing "dual citizenship' Turkish workers, allowing them civil rights inside Germany.
semi-legal existence.
The fascist press, half a dozen different weeklies and culation of around 800,000.
What gave this current its new opportunity was of course the social and oconomic crisis. coperty massive youth unemployment, made worse by German reunification. In the time-honoured manner the immigrants and "foreigners' are made the scapegoats.
The far-right organisations probably organise 100,000 people. The Republicans have around 25,000 members, and will probably gets seats in the Bundestag in the next elections. passing the necessary 5 per cent barrier. National Union has about 22,000 members, and already has seats in the regional parliaments Schlesweig-Holstein and Bremen.
The Nazi terrorist groups are much smaller of course. But 15 per cent of Germans says they sympanse with the arms of the far right, and 35 per cent want tougher action against immigrants.
Far right groups have found an audience because in tie pre sent crisis the Social Democrats and most of the rest of the left are discredited.
Responsible
The SPD is soen as being coresponsible for the crisis and nearly all the far left was in some way or another Stalinist. It left on a new basis out of a new generation.
Right now a major problem is the lack of a viable national antifascist campaign to co-ordinate a major fight back. Each time there are attacks the left leads big mobilisations. But we need to build a united anti-fascist Hans-Jurgen Schultz is a leading member of the Avanti group, German supporters of the Fourth interational.