国际英语新闻:"Occupy" protest sweeps German cities

BERLIN, Oct. 15 (Xinhua) -- Tens of thousands of people flooded streets Saturday for demonstrations across Germany, inspired by New York's "Occupy Wall Street" movement which condemned social injustice and polarization.

Police said some 5,000 people attended a gathering in front of the ECB (The European central bank) building in Frankfurt, a major city in Germany and euro zone's financial center.

The protesters, including people of all ages, marched toward the ECB building after noon, with slogans such as "We are the 99 per cent", "Stupid Banks", "You are speculating with our lives" and "You are gambling away our future," showing their unbearable anger over the enlarging gap between the rich and poor and the greed of capitalists.

"We rally to protest against the social disparity with very clear aim, to turn against the big banks" 52-year-old Mechthild Saxler said, adding that as people were getting poorer and poorer, while bank get even richer.

"It is unfair, as government should stand on the side of the people instead of the bank", Saxler said, stressing that more and more people become growingly unsatisfied with the privatization process.

"The government turn deaf to the voice of the people, but have been kidnapped by the the avaricious bankers", 32-year-old computer engineer Matthias hold a slogan placard with "Help All."

In capital Berlin, the demonstration started from the Alexanderplatz, a major shopping mall in the eastern city, and then targeted the Chancellor's Office and the Federal Parliament. Thousands of people sit in the square between the two buildings.

Up to 5 p.m., an estimated 20,000 protesters showed up in the heart of German politics,a large part of which are young people and students.

German media reported that on the same day, Munich, Hamburg, Hannover, Cologne, Leipzig and Stuttgart also witnessed similar marches and demonstrations. The German news television N-tv said more than 50 cities in Germany joined in the movement.

Michael Sommer, chairman of the German Trade Union Federation (DGB), said Saturday's nationwide protests highlighted "the conflicts between rich and poor", and have sent "an alarm signal."

Sigmar Gabriel, the party leader of the main opposition Social Democrats, encouraged the Germans to go along with the American protest movement against banks and stockbrokers, adding that the ideology of "neo-liberals" had failed, which lead to "an end of an era."

"The adoration of the boundless freedom of the markets has brought the world to the brink of ruin," he said.

He also called for a break-up of German Banks, stressing that it is time to "separate investment and commercial banking" from the whole financial system.