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Olaf Scholz visiting school in Kleinmachnow
Photo: Fabrizio Bensch / REUTERS
The tone is becoming harsher in the dispute between the climate protection activists of the "Last Generation" and German top politics. The organization has expressed "stunned" by Chancellor Olaf Scholz's criticism of its sticking actions, which the SPD politician had dismissed as "completely crazy" in conversation with students.
"Mr. Scholz, how dare you stand in front of the children whose future you are destroying and say that you find protest against your destructive policies 'completely crazy'?" the environmentalists explained. After all, it is the chancellor's fault that people on Germany's streets have to peacefully try to fight for their fundamental rights.
"The cause of our protest lies in the irresponsible fueling of social collapse by the Scholz government," it continued.
The group "Last Generation" regularly draws attention to the fatal consequences of global warming with sit-ins and actions in museums. The members often glue themselves to streets or even works of art.
Scholz had said on Monday in a school in Kleinmachnow, Brandenburg, that he had the impression that the actions did not help anyone to change their minds, but that everyone was annoyed. "I think it's completely crazy to somehow stick to a picture or on the street," said Scholz.
Gloomy prognosis of the climate researcher
The "Last Generation" explained that Scholz presented himself as "the dear uncle", although he knew that he was pushing these children into a global school bus that had a 98 percent chance of being killed in an accident. The activists quoted a statement by the former head of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, Hans Joachim Schellnhuber.
In 2019, he had said with regard to the inadequate climate protection policy: "I tell you that we are pushing our children into a global school bus that has a 98 percent probability of being fatally injured."
jok/dpa