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Protest in Grünheide: “Tesla, no thanks”
Photo: Odd Andersen / AFP
Accompanied by the police, environmental activists demonstrated in Grünheide in the afternoon against the expansion plans of the electric car manufacturer Tesla.
The spokeswoman for the environmental alliance “Turn off the tap from Tesla,” Lou Winters, said that well over a thousand participants came.
The police did not provide any information about the size of the demonstration.
Slogans like “Less car, more space to live” and “Water is a human right” could be read on posters.
The participants were diverse, some came by bicycle and families also took part in the demonstration.
The protest march by the “Turn off Tesla” alliance is primarily directed against the expansion of the Tesla site for a freight station as well as logistics and storage space.
Since last week, environmental activists have been protesting in a tree house camp in Grünheide against the planned expansion of the Tesla site and the deforestation.
According to its own statements, the “Stop Tesla” initiative always expects the protest camp to be evacuated.
The police said on Sunday that they were keeping a close eye on gatherings in the forest.
The camp will continue to be tolerated until mid-March.
In addition, residents in Grünheide demonstrated at a second rally in the afternoon who want to show their solidarity with Tesla and see the settlement as an opportunity for the future development of the community.
»We welcome the presence and strive for close cooperation to achieve common goals.
An attack on Tesla is an attack on us," said the organizers.
"The recent attacks represent a threat to our values and our cohesion and our community."
Production interrupted for a longer period after the attack
The attack on Tesla's power supply, for which a left-wing extremist group has claimed responsibility, is causing uncertainty in the region.
Security precautions have been strengthened.
On Tuesday, previously unknown perpetrators set fire to a freely accessible electricity pylon that also supplies the car factory with energy.
The Federal Prosecutor's Office, as the highest prosecution authority, took over the investigation.
Repairs to the power pole are ongoing.
The network operator Edis says it is making progress with the construction work.
The company has not yet said when the power supply for Tesla and an Edeka logistics center will work again.
Tesla expects production in Grünheide to remain interrupted until the end of next week.
On Friday evening, employees gathered in front of the Tesla factory to show solidarity and turned on their cell phone lights.
The attack also sparked a debate about better protection for energy networks in Germany.
czl/dpa