10,000 protestors attend Munich rally against coronavirus measures

Some 10,000 people attended a rally in the Bavarian city of Munich against measures imposed to curtail the spread of the coronavirus, twice the number who were registered, police said on Saturday, as similar events were held in other German cities.

The rally proceeded peacefully, police said, who have 1,400 officers on hand.

A parade through Munich that took place before the rally was called off early after it had attracted several hundred people and police noted almost no one was wearing a mask.

The organizers, Querdenken 089 (Lateral Thinking 089), asked participants to gather at Theresienwiese, the official grounds of the city's famous Oktoberfest, where the main rally was staged.

The parade had initially been banned, before a court permitted it to go ahead in a decision in the early hours of Saturday.

In Hanover, around 1,100 people demonstrated against preventive measures, although police had expected more attendees.

The event's organizers had to briefly interrupt a parade through the city to call on protesters to maintain social distancing and wear protective face coverings - preconditions for the event to go ahead.

One attendee spoke of a "fake pandemic," saying the government was denying people their human rights and wasting taxpayers' money.

A group called "Parents Stand Up" also attended the event, arguing that children are badly affected by the measures. Attendees wore T-shirts opposing vaccines and criticizing the media.

There were also several counterdemonstrations in the north-western city organized by a left-wing youth group and the German trade union association DGB under the rallying cry: "For health protection and against conspiracy theories."

In the city of Wiesbaden, only 150 people came to a demonstration opposing the virus measures, far fewer than the 3,000 registered.

About 50 attended a vigil against right-wingers.

There is growing concern about the right-wing presence dominating some events opposing virus measures. Earlier this month, Germany's domestic security agency noted right-wing extremists had given speeches at 90 demonstrations against the measures so far this year.

And last month, tens of thousands of people gathered in Berlin to demonstrate against health measures, protesting against what they called "coronavirus dictatorship" and "corona madness."

Among them were groups of self-declared Reichsbuerger (Reich citizens), who deny the legitimacy of the modern-day German state, chanting and carrying posters and leaflets. There were also smaller groups of neo-Nazis and right-wing extremists.

On Saturday, in her weekly podcast, German Chancellor Angela Merkel defended the government's measures to contain the virus but emphasized she was willing to discuss the question.

"In our country, everyone is free to openly criticize these government decisions," she said. The freedom to protest peacefully made many people envy Germany, she said, looking ahead to the United Nations' International Day of Democracy on Tuesday.

Contact restrictions and the curtailing of public life have helped Germany prevent the pandemic from spreading uncontrollably, she said.

At the outset of the pandemic, Germany saw relatively few cases and deaths compared to other countries in Europe. However, numbers are now rising, after restrictions were lifted and international travel relaunched over the summer.