Paul Ronzheimer, deputy editor-in-chief of Germany’s most-read newspaper Bild, has claimed a “massive restriction of press freedom” after left-wing protesters attacked him and his team.
Ronzheimer and his colleagues had covered the huge protests against the opposition right-wing Alternative for Germany party (AfD) on November 29 in Gießen, 60km north of Frankfurt.
According to the interior ministry, more than 25,000 demonstrators from all over Germany had congregated in the central German town to protests against the founding of the AfD’s new youth movement, which took place in a local convention centre.
The protests quickly turned violent, with participants blocking AfD delegates from reaching the venue and physically attacking both attendants and police.
According to police union GdP, around 30 officers were injured in the clashes.
AfD MP Julian Schmidt was attacked by a group of 20 masked protesters and beaten, sustaining facial injuries.
Ronzheimer retold what happened on X: “Around 11:30am we were conducting interviews with protesters at a demonstration near Adenauer Bridge. After a short while we were being recognised and antagonised by more and more people. Finally, they announced from the stage via loudspeakers that Paul Ronzheimer was there interviewing people.”
Bild is considered a right-wing publication by many on Germany’s militant left-wing – even though Ronzheimer himself has spoken out against the AfD in the past.
He said a speaker had urged protesters to “make noise against him”. Consequently, more and more people closed in on him and his team.
“After we left the centre of the protests at Adenauer Bridge, several hundred demonstrators continued to follow us along the street, chanting slogans and becoming increasingly aggressive,” the journalist continued.
Ronzheimer added that police officers had to protect his team from the violent demonstrators. The officers subsequently told the journalists to abort their filming before escorting them to a fenced-off area where they had to stay for an hour before they could continue their work.
“What my team and I experienced in Giessen during the protests against the AfD youth organisation was a massive restriction of press freedom – and completely unacceptable. The insults and aggression deeply shocked us”, Ronzheimer said.
While his remarks were met with sympathy by many commentators, some journalists added that this kind of treatment from the Left was nothing new.
“That is the reality in which right-wingers – or those others consider as such – have been living for years. Good morning!,” wrote journalist Jan A Karon.
Former AfD MP Joana Cotar echoed the sentiment, telling Ronzheimer: “Welcome to the reality in which conservative, libertarian, and simply non-left people who voice their opinion publicly, have been living for 10 years.”
