LAST UPDATE | 20 Apr

BERLIN POLICE HAVE confirmed that it arrested an individual for speaking Irish during a protest outside the Irish embassy in Berlin.

The protest, which took place on Wednesday, was in support of the Palestinian people. It was organised by Irish Bloc Berlin, a group that describes itself as a “Berlin-based platform for Irish solidarity with Palestine”.

The police said that during cooperation talks with the organisers of the protest, police had determined that speeches or audio recordings must be delivered in either German or English, as police did not have Irish interpreters available.

It said that “to prevent criminal offences, it must be ensured that speeches or audio recordings can be understood by the emergency services at all times.”

As the protest continued, police reported that one individual participating began speaking Irish. Emergency services consulted with the organisers of the protest and asked that they “influence” the person to stop.

It said that after repeated requests for the individual to cease speaking Irish, they were then arrested “for violating Berlin’s Freedom of Assembly Act”.

After their identity was established, the individual was later released, it said.

The group’s organisers claim that police had said that they would seek an interpreter to be present at the demonstration, enabling them to speak in Irish during the protest.

Berlin police would not confirm nor deny this when asked by The Journal.

One member of the bloc told The Journal that the arrested individual was not speaking at length in Irish, but chanting the slogan “Saoirse don Phalaistín” (Free Palestine).

Irish Bloc Berlin said that the protest was attended by a group of between 30 to 40 people and had been registered with the police three days beforehand, as is standard practice in Germany. One member refuted several statements made by the police in relation to the organisation of the protest.

The protest was demanding that the Occupied Territories Bill be passed by the Irish government, as well as calling for a stop to the use of Shannon Airport and Irish airspace to transport weapons to Israel. 

It was also protesting against the embassy’s “lack of support” for two Irish citizens that are currently set to be deported from Germany over their involvement in a pro-Palestine protest. 

Last year, a group of Irish-language activists from within the same group said they were told by German police in Berlin to stop speaking and singing in Irish while they held a pro-Palestinian event. 

The group said that they had been peacefully singing and chanting as Gaeilge when police approached them and said that it was illegal to speak languages other than German and English at protests.

Includes reporting by David MacRedmond