Anti-ECB ‘Blockupy’ rally turns violent in Frankfurt

Thousands of riot officers pursued what they said was a minority of violence-minded activists as the bulk of protesters conducted themselves peacefully ahead of a rally in the city’s main square.

Demonstrators dressed as clowns pass by a burning police car in Frankfurt, Germany. 'Blockupy' activists tried to blockade the new headquarters of the ECB to protest against government austerity and cShow more

FRANKFURT // At least four police cars were set alight and two officers injured on Wednesday as authorities confronted violent anti-austerity protesters ahead of the inauguration ceremony for the European Central Bank’s new headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany.

The ceremony went ahead as planned, with ECB president Mario Draghi saying the new building for the euro bloc’s monetary authority was “a symbol of what Europe can achieve together”.

Police said 350 people were detained as officers pursued what they said was a minority of violence-minded activists using the protest as cover.

The bulk of demonstrators conducted themselves peacefully, marching in groups, drumming and singing ahead of a rally in the city’s main square. Some blocked bridges across the Main River or streets in an effort to hinder access to the ECB ceremony.

Protesters said they were targeting the central bank because of its role in supervising efforts to restrain spending and reduce debt in financially troubled countries such as Greece.

Blockupy activist Hannah Eberle said that “people remain determined” despite the heavy police presence. “The mood is good, we are in solidarity with each other,” she said ahead of the rally.

At the ECB ceremony, Tarek Al Wazir, economy minister of the German Hesse region, called on the peaceful demonstrators to “distance yourselves from the violence”.

Mr Al Wazir, a member of the Greens party, said that the protesters “have no answers ... but they have some of the right questions”, conceding that “austerity can indeed be self-defeating”.

He said the ECB was the wrong target for this kind of protest.

Mr Draghi has in fact urged more spending by governments that are in good financial shape such as Germany to help lift the economy and reduce unemployment. That advice has been ignored by the German government, which has stressed the need to balance its budget and pressed others to restrain spending.

Police said several police cars were set on fire at a police station in the city centre. Another police vehicle smoldered a block from the ECB. Private vehicles and garbage bins were also torched.

Some 10,000 people were expected on Frankfurt’s main square, the Roemerberg. Participants were to include trade unions and Germany’s Left Party.

The ECB, along with the European Commission and International Monetary Fund, is part of the so-called “troika” that monitors compliance with the conditions of bailout loans for Greece and other financially troubled countries in Europe.

Those conditions include spending cuts and reducing deficits, moves that are aimed at reducing debt but have also been blamed for high unemployment and slow growth.

Anti-austerity activists received a political boost when Greece’s left-wing Syriza party won elections there in January by campaigning against the bailout deal and its conditions, which they say has led to a “humanitarian crisis”.

The Greek parliament on Wednesday adopted the “humanitarian crisis” bill – the first package of social measures put forward by prime minister Alexis Tsipras’ radical left-wing government.

In going ahead with presenting the bill of housing allowances and emergency food aid for the poorest, the government ignored apparent attempts from the European Commission to halt it. Athens reacted angrily to a request from Declan Costello, a representative on the European Commission team monitoring Greece, telling the government not to make a “unilateral” move.

Refusal of the conditions, however, has led to the withholding of further aid and the possibility of a chaotic debt default by the government.

* Associated Press, with additional reporting from Agence France-Presse