- Leftist campaign team threatened with machete
Five 14 to 20-year-old election campaign helpers of the Left party were threatened with a machete in Dohna (district of Saxony Switzerland-O Ore Mountains). The team was distributing campaign materials on Wednesday when an unknown person initially threatened them verbally, the police reported. Shortly afterwards, the man reappeared and threatened the campaign helpers with a machete. They filed a complaint on Thursday. The state protection department has taken over the investigation.
"Words fail one. You think you've seen it all and then new, even more shocking events happen," said state party chairwoman Susanne Schaper. "How can it be that a group of campaigners is threatened with a machete in broad daylight just because they're participating democratically?" If democratic competition can only be pursued with police protection, that should be a serious cause for concern, Schaper said.
Attacks on campaigners
There had already been an incident involving a team from the Pirate Party over the weekend, and in Leipzig, campaign helpers were threatened while putting up posters the week before. There had also been several incidents involving campaign teams in Saxony before the European and local elections.
A brutal attack on MEP Matthias Ecke (SPD) in Dresden in early May caused a sensation. He was beaten up by several young men at night and injured so severely that he had to be treated in hospital.
The police are looking into the incident where campaign helpers from the Left party were threatened with a machete while distributing materials. If such attacks on campaigners continue, it suggests a deteriorating environment for democratic participation.
