Protests against Hartz IV reforms
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Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
were aimed at the 2004 Hartz IV reform
Hartz concept
The Hartz concept is a set of recommendations that resulted from a commission on reforms to the German labour market in 2002. Named after the head of the commission, Peter Hartz, it went on to become part of the German government's Agenda 2010 series of reforms, known as Hartz I - Hartz IV...
, which provide significant cutbacks in social welfare benefits for long-term (over 12 months) unemployed persons.
The demonstrations started on 2 August, when about 10,000 people took part. In two weeks, over 100,000 people marched in over 100 German cities and towns, mostly in Eastern Germany (the former GDR). In September, unemployment reached 10.5% of the workforce nationwide, while peaking at 18.2% in Eastern Germany; participation usually mirrored the level of unemployment in the respective area. In 2005, fewer demonstrations took place - only every second Monday of the month. On the downside, neofascists started using the agitation of workless people for their propaganda.
The demonstrations were arranged and named the Monday demonstrations in an analogy with the 1989/1990 Monday demonstrations in East Germany
Monday demonstrations in East Germany
The Monday demonstrations in East Germany in 1989 and 1990 were a series of peaceful political protests against the authoritarian communist government of the German Democratic Republic that took place every Monday evening.- Overview :...
. Some considered this adaption to be political abuse, pointing out that these reforms are a "necessary evil" to deal with a crisis in the welfare system, and regard it as inadequate that protest
Protest
A protest is an expression of objection, by words or by actions, to particular events, policies or situations. Protests can take many different forms, from individual statements to mass demonstrations...
s for democracy are turned into protests for more social benefits. The supporters of the rallies denounce this criticism as an attempt to stifle the protests of the affected people.