This past Monday in Cologne, Germany, around 250,000 people turned out for a rally against Russia’s Vladimir Putin’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine — and that’s not even the only recent anti-Putin gathering to feature a staggering number of participants along those lines, although it’s perhaps the largest. In Berlin, some 100,000 people turned out on Sunday to tout opposition to the unfolding attack on Ukraine, which has claimed the lives of civilians and military personnel alike. The Cologne event fell on the date of the traditional Rosenmontag, or Rose Monday, celebration, which has been characterized as on par with Mardi Gras.
Yermak: Russia hits Babyn Yar, holocaust memorial site.
President’s Chief of Staff Andriy Yermak says a missile hit Babyn Yar, a holocaust memorial site, where in 1941, Nazi Germany committed a massacre of Kyiv’s Jewish population.
— The Kyiv Independent (@KyivIndependent) March 1, 2022
As summarized by France24, the “traditional carnival street festival had been called off this year because of the coronavirus pandemic. But organisers decided instead to hold a peace march on Monday in solidarity with Ukraine.” The figure of a quarter of a million participants apparently came from local police; German Ambassador to India Walter J. Lindner cited a figure of over 200,000 participants in the event, but France24 specified that the higher figure was drawn from a “peak” of the gathering. Journalist Thomas Sparrow said that the protest in Cologne was “described as the largest peace demonstration in the city’s history.” Hendrik Wüst, who serves as state premier of North Rhine-Westphalia, was present for the Cologne demonstration and wrote on Twitter, per a translation, that the “people of Cologne would have liked to celebrate Shrove Monday again after 2 years of the pandemic. Instead they show solidarity & stand up for peace in the #Ukraine. A strong sign.”
The number of people who have fled Ukraine to neighbouring countries has reached 677,000.
The @UN humanitarian agencies and their NGO partners have launched an appeal to donors for $ 1.7 billion to support affected people inside Ukraine, and refugees from Ukraine in the region.
— Filippo Grandi (@FilippoGrandi) March 1, 2022
Other anti-war protests have taken place even inside Russia, although spontaneous mass demonstrations are illegal in the country and punishable by fines and jail-time. Thousands of protesting Russians have been arrested, but demonstrations have continued. Protests against the conflict have also been seen in Belarus, whose authoritarian leader is allied with Putin and has allowed the usage of Belarusian territory for launching attacks on Ukraine. In Belarus, there have also been arrests connected to these demonstrations. And the protests go on from there: public shows of opposition to Putin’s aggression targeting Ukraine have also been recorded in the United States, the European nation of Georgia, Iran, Switzerland, Austria, the United Kingdom, and elsewhere. Governments around the world have swiftly acted to isolate the Russian economy; with sharp restrictions suddenly placed on access by Russia’s central bank to their hundreds of billions of dollars in foreign currency reserves. The value of Russian currency has plummeted amid the crisis — although there’s been no substantial let-up in the ongoing Russian assault on Ukraine, which has displaced some 677,000 Ukrainians. See images of the Cologne demonstration against the war below:
Today’s peace protest in the city of #Cologne.
Local media say around 250,000 people attended what’s now described as the largest peace demonstration in the city’s history #Ukraine
📸@dpa_intl @KSTA pic.twitter.com/0LUP3aOxoF
— Thomas Sparrow (@Thomas_Sparrow) February 28, 2022
After Berlin’s massive protest-march on Sunday, yesterday 200.000+ took to the streets in GER’s Cologne to protest against Putin’s invasion & call for peace in UKR. Cologne’s traditional Rosenmontag carnival parade was turned into a demonstration to show solidarity with Ukraine. pic.twitter.com/OdyxL0B0Y5
— Walter J. Lindner (@AmbLindnerIndia) March 1, 2022
🇩🇪 Cologne, Germany’s Karneval capital, today:
More than 250.000 turned the city’s traditional Rosenmontag parade into a huge protest vs the Ukraine war.
This is both big as Cologne takes its Karneval very seriously, but also not surprising because Cologne is an awesome place. pic.twitter.com/LCFFZZPPQL
— Michael Knigge (@kniggem) February 28, 2022
#Köln zeigt #Solidarität mit der #Ukraine: statt des Rosenmontagszugs gibt es heute eine große Friedensdemonstration. Auch Ministerpräsident @HendrikWuest nimmt teil. „Ein starkes Zeichen“, so der Ministerpräsident. pic.twitter.com/ESp1opyCms
— Staatskanzlei NRW (@landnrw) February 28, 2022
Featured Image (edited) from Wikimedia Commons, available under a Creative Commons License
