By Isabel Pancake
Fights, evictions, bathing stop – Berlin’s outdoor pools are capitulating to the violence. The first politicians are now demanding consistent police action against outdoor pool riots!
After the escalation of violence in Neukölln’s Columbiabad, the staff called in sick in droves, and the pool had to close – and that at the beginning of the summer holidays! Unacceptable for politics!
► CDU leader Friedrich Merz (67): “There will be no getting around a higher police presence in the outdoor pools.”
► Also Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (52, SPD) wants to take a hard line against violence in outdoor pools: “That also means: police presence. I want to make that very clear.”
► Berlin Governing Mayor Kai Wegner (50, CDU) announced that he would take short-term measures – but he is rather critical of police protection. Wegner: “I won’t be able to monitor every pool with several hundred people, because we also have to protect the Berlin police officers here.”
► This is also how she argues Police Union (GdP), spokesman Benjamin Jendro to the BZ: “Here, the operators and the districts have an obligation.”
But the Kreuzberg Prinzenbad, where there was a brutal fight on Sunday, is already under police protection! There has been a mobile guard here since Wednesday! But the Columbiabad remains closed.
This excerpt from a TikTok video is intended to show the police operation in the Prinzenbad last Sunday Photo: Tiktok
In a fire letter to the bathing establishments, the employees had called for the police – and described the frightening conditions. According to the “Tagesspiegel” on two pages it says that employees are “consciously psychologically terrorized” and that “far beyond their load limit.” They would be insulted, spat on and beaten.
Girls would be sexually harassed, there would be riots in the sanitary facilities and faeces would be smeared. The perpetrators are primarily young people from Arab families, some of whom are Chechens, and are deliberately provocative.
One of the young people is said to have said: “Something like New Year’s Eve will now also be in the Columbiabad.”
In the letter, the employees demand, among other things, access during peak hours and day tickets only for families with children, constant police presence, online tickets only and entry by name.
The staff wrote the fire letter on June 17 – without any response. Because only four days later, 50 young people stormed the slide in the pool – result: the slide and the diving board were closed.
Pool boss Johannes Kleinsorg announced in response that he would “completely review all measures for safe bathing operations”.
Changed upper limits for visitors, stronger sanctions for violations of the house and bathing rules and changed operating processes are conceivable. Everything is discussed, and the backing of Berlin politics is essential. “We will implement some things quickly, others will take time,” says Kleinsorg.