Protests occur. - Scholz urges protesters to end their climate hunger strike.
Olaf Scholz, the Federal Chancellor, has made another plea for the climate protesters on a hunger strike in Berlin to end their demonstration. During an event organized by the "Thuringian General Newspaper," the SPD politician expressed his desire for a conclusion to the strike. Scholz did not address the specific demands of the activists.
The "Hunger until you're honest" campaigners have been on strike in Berlin for several weeks, and some have gotten seriously ill. They're asking for a government statement from the Chancellor, which would state that the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is too high and that the world has reached its CO2 limit.
During the event in Erfurt, a citizen directly asked Scholz if he considers the statement to be a fact or an opinion. The Chancellor's response could potentially end the hunger strike. Instead of offering a direct answer, Scholz reaffirmed the scientific consensus that human-induced climate change is occurring. The government's objective is to combat climate change as much as possible while striving to keep the rise in global temperatures at 1.5 degrees.
Scholz acknowledged that there's no magic solution from the world of science. "In a democracy, what we want politically needs to be debated," he said. Political decisions can't be forced through by someone going without food, and they're not something that can be left to the courts. "We have to create majorities among the citizens and citizens for what we believe is right. This doesn't come from outside."
