"Aktenzeichen XY" honors courageous helpers
The homeless man is tortured for more than two hours in a Bochum subway station. A young man and a young woman repeatedly punch and kick him. It is early New Year's Eve 2022 and people are in a hurry. More than 50 passers-by walk past, but no one intervenes. This is what videos from the surveillance cameras show. Only two committed witnesses put an end to the drama by independently calling for help. 72-year-old Lothar C. and young Yelyzaveta K., who came to Germany from the Ukraine, presumably save the life of the homeless man, who was covered in blood. Together with two other courageous helpers, they were honored on Thursday by the ZDF program "Aktenzeichen XY... unsolved" program awarded them a prize for their efforts.
The "XY Prize - Together Against Crime", each worth 10,000 euros, was presented to them in the ZDF capital studio in Berlin. Federal Minister of the Interior Nancy Faeser (SPD) honored the two women and two men, all from North Rhine-Westphalia, for their "courage and intelligence".
Lothar C. and Yelyzaveta K. both acted without putting themselves in danger, but nevertheless decisively and correctly. Lothar C. made an emergency call to the police and described the situation. Yelyzaveta K. passed by the same place shortly afterwards. Because she did not yet speak German well, she called a friend who alerted the police. "You just have to imagine getting into a situation like that yourself, I just had to help," said Lothar C. on Thursday.
Mentally ill perpetrator
"It was really terrible, I didn't expect it because I thought Germany was a safe country," reports Yelyzaveta K. "Then I saw it and was shocked. But I believe that everyone should help each other, always." At this point, the laudator, actor Jürgen Vogel, intervenes again. "We sometimes play the heroes, you really are in your private lives. Thank you very much."
In another case at the award ceremony, an elderly woman sees a man and a woman on the street from an office building in Aachen early in the morning in the fall of 2022. Other witnesses do not recognize a problem, Klara C. quickly realizes that the sexual acts are not consensual and that the woman, frozen with fear, is in a real predicament. "There are enough people who look the other way, but I'm not one of them," says Klara C. in a broad Rhenish singsong. She calls the police, doesn't take her eyes off the perpetrator and victim and is able to lead the police to them. It turns out that the man had already raped the woman and wanted to force her to withdraw money.
In Mülheim in the summer of 2022, Mohamad Al H., a parcel carrier from Syria, witnessed a mentally ill perpetrator ranting aggressively and then stabbing an 81-year-old woman in the back. Mohamad Al H. knows the woman's home and alerts her relatives, at the same time calling the police and pursuing the perpetrator. As he approaches a bus stop where children and elderly people are waiting, he stops the perpetrator and clutches him. After three to four minutes, the police arrived, he says. "Without the police, I wouldn't have been able to get any further with the man, it was very difficult. This award is also for the police here in Germany." According to ZDF, the 81-year-old underwent surgery after the knife attack and survived.
Faeser: "Take a look"
On stage several times this morning, Interior Minister Faeser asked: "Look if something seems strange to you. And call for help." The helpers were role models who "acted when others were in need". Nobody has to put themselves in danger, the important thing is not to look away, but to alert the police: better one too many times than one too few. On November 29, the award winners will be guests on the live program "Aktenzeichen XY... unsolved" and talk about their actions.
The harrowing incident in the subway station sparked public outcry, leading to calls for more awareness and action against crime. This resulted in the establishment of the "XY Prize - Together Against Crime," which recognizes individuals like Lothar C. and Yelyzaveta K., who, despite not being present during the initial crime, showed exceptional courage by reporting it and potentially saving a life.
Furthermore, the recognition of courageous helpers extends beyond the boundaries of crime, as witnessed in the case of Mohamad Al H., the Syrian parcel carrier who intervened in a violent situation, potentially saving an elderly woman's life. His actions, along with those of other honorees, underscore the importance of community involvement and quick response in the face of adversity. These individuals, recognized through awards like the "XY Prize," serve as inspirational examples in the ongoing fight against crime and violence on television and beyond.
Source: www.dpa.com
