Small protests and blockades at universities in Berlin and Hamburg against conscription and cuts

According to the Tagesspiegel, students protested at universities in Berlin and Hamburg on Tuesday against compulsory military service and cuts in higher education. Participation was very small.

At the Free University of Berlin, students blocked the Otto-Suhr-Institut for political science and stopped others from entering, a university spokeswoman confirmed. At Humboldt University, about 30 people demonstrated in front of the Institute for Social Sciences. The university kept the institute closed for safety reasons. It said the event had been registered, took place on public street space, and that police were present.

In Hamburg, the university spokesman said an entrance to the "Phil-Turm" building was barricaded from 6:30 am with construction fencing and grates. Students and staff could still enter through the canteen entrance. The registered demonstration had 40 to 60 participants. Around 10 am police began clearing the barricade despite brief resistance from activists, the spokesman said. The rally then continued peacefully.

Posters and flyers carried various demands, including slogans against conscription and "militarisation", for a democratisation of the university and for reversing cuts. Some flyers addressed the Middle East conflict and accused Humboldt University of being "complicit" in crimes in Gaza.

The actions took place in the context of "Gen Z regelt", a still small movement inspired by youth protests in several EU countries. A Berlin-wide day of action is planned for Wednesday, 11 November. The Federal Student Conference plans its own "International Youth Strike" on 20 November and has distanced itself from the "Gen Z regelt" demonstrations.

Last Thursday at the University of Kassel, police forcibly cleared a lecture hall that students had occupied the day before, after the university senate weakened its civil clause.