Text of the speech by Lord Mayor Frank Klingebiel at the vigil on 28.02.2022 in Salzgitter-Bad (the spoken word prevails):
"I would like to thank you all from the bottom of my heart for responding in such large numbers to the call from our alliance "Salzgitter passt auf!". Here and now in Salzgitter - as in many other cities in Germany and around the world since last Thursday - we are sending an impressive signal for peace, freedom and democracy as well as for solidarity, respect and tolerance.
Our original intention was to commemorate the 132 people and their families who have died of a corona infection in Salzgitter since the outbreak of the pandemic almost two years ago and to thank the many, many people who have kept public life going at the risk of their health and lives and actively fought the pandemic in one of the most serious crises.
But last Thursday, February 24, 2022, when Russian troops, on the orders of Russian President Putin, invaded the free and self-determined Republic of Ukraine with its approximately 44 million inhabitants, overshadows everything.
A pitch-black day for the world peace community! A war of aggression in Europe, unleashed by a victorious power of the Second World War, which the Kremlin propaganda on behalf of President Putin is trying to justify in terms of world and domestic politics as a liberation action of the Ukrainian population from a "Nazi regime".
Yes, is that still possible, Mr. President? How disgusting is that!
To put it bluntly: nothing, absolutely nothing, can justify a war of aggression. And lies have short legs! Mr. President Putin: the truth will also come to light among the Russian people!
Stop the bloodshed on Ukrainian soil and your megalomania of conquest, which is bringing destruction, death, flight and displacement to the Ukrainian population, but is already claiming Russian lives and threatening to spread to Europe and the world.
We see and hear the sounds of bombs and shells, destroyed military vehicles, downed airplanes, dead soldiers, dead freedom fighters and dead civilians, houses lying in ruins, people who no longer have a place to stay, people huddled in cellars and air raid shelters at night and people who are leaving their homes - fearing for their lives - and fleeing to neighboring, safe countries. We see men taking their wives and children across the border to safety and then making their way back to their home town to defend their homeland.......... to fight for peace, freedom and democracy.
Tears and suffering everywhere! Mr. President Putin, you can't want that either.
We call on you to stop the fighting immediately and to enter into negotiations with Ukrainian President Zelenskyi on a peaceful solution to the long-standing conflict. War and violence are never a solution, but bring death, destruction and endless suffering to the Russian population.
You bear great responsibility for your country, your people and world peace!
Do not jeopardize what we have all built together after the Second World War over the last 77 years, especially in Europe, a continent that has been marked by wars in the past, but also in the world.
Think back to the Second World War, Europe's Armageddon, which cost the lives of at least 70 million people, and the day when Europe and the world were liberated from Hitler's Nazi dictatorship on May 8/9, 1945.
The Russian people in particular had to pay a high price for the victory over Hitler's National Socialists and for world peace: 9.75 million Russian soldiers and 14.25 million Russian civilians fell victim to Hitler's lust for power and megalomania.
This madness must never happen again. We are not the only ones who believe this, the Russian people do too.
In our Russian twin town of Staryj Oskol, I experienced how much the Russian population longs for lasting peace. On the anniversary of the liberation from Hitler's Nazi rule, tens of thousands of people in Staryj Oskol and millions of people throughout Russia still take to the streets, each and every one of them carrying a placard with a photo of a family member who was killed in the Second World War. The war, the terrible atrocities and the endless suffering are deeply embedded in the collective memory of all Russians. And that shows us: the Russian people don't want war either! Or in the words of the British musician Sting in his 1985 song criticizing the Cold War and the balance of terror "Russians": "I know the Russians love their children too"!
You should bear that in mind, Mr. President Putin.
The peaceful demonstrations around the world, but also the extremely courageous demonstrations and voices in Moscow and throughout Russia against the Russian invasion of Ukraine and its blatant violation of international law, give us hope. Russian scientists, doctors and dozens of Russian aid organizations have distanced themselves from the war of aggression in open letters to President Putin and are calling for an immediate ceasefire and the withdrawal of Russian soldiers. They write: "War is a humanitarian catastrophe that increases pain and suffering. We consider violent methods of resolving political conflicts to be inhumane and call on you to cease fire and start negotiations."
Admittedly, the resistance among our own people is still small, but it cannot be suppressed in the long term.
And let me tell you one more thing, Mr. President Putin: your assessment that you will defeat and subjugate Ukraine in a "blitzkrieg" is a terrible miscalculation. Your brutal and unyielding approach makes us shudder and brings back terrible memories of the beginning of the Second World War.
It began on September 1, 1939 with the invasion of Poland by the German Wehrmacht. Hitler's propaganda presented this attack on Poland as a defensive action. France and Great Britain demanded the withdrawal of German soldiers from Poland within two days. Hitler let the ultimatum pass. The German "Blitzkrieg" subdued Poland within four weeks, but it was the beginning of a barbaric world war that brought unimaginable suffering to mankind. Your military invasion of Ukraine and your propaganda show many parallels to the invasion of Poland by the German Wehrmacht at the beginning of the Second World War. This leaves us stunned and insane. Mr. President Putin: see reason and end your invasion of Ukraine!
Regardless of the fear of a third world war, which concerns us all, you must realize that you will never defeat Ukraine in a "blitzkrieg" despite your military superiority. In addition to the 200,000 or so Ukrainian soldiers and around 900,000 reservists, President Zelensky has already ordered general mobilization. All male citizens between the ages of 18 and 60 will be supplied with weapons and are called upon to defend their homeland against the Russian invasion. And rest assured: they will fight... out of deep conviction and with all means ... because they are fighting for their peace, their freedom, their homeland and their families. And Ukraine does not stand alone, you do! Russia is also threatened by a long, bloody and cruel war. And the sanctions that more and more states are imposing on Russia will hit the Russian people hard.
President Putin, we call on you:
Put an end to this madness ... quickly and through negotiations!
Peace and independence for Ukraine and the whole of Europe!
Despite these terrible events overlaying everything else and despite the easing of the coronavirus pandemic from mid-March 2022, I would also like to say a few words about the events of the last two years of the pandemic.
At the turn of 2020/2021, I - like many of you - was full of confidence that the pandemic would be over by the end of 2021/2022 and coronavirus would no longer be an issue. After all, 14 months ago, our municipal vaccination center was already in the starting blocks and started with the first vaccinations in retirement and nursing homes on 30 December 2020. However, reality quickly caught up with us all and made it clear that the fight against the pandemic, with its incredible complexity and emotionality, presented and continues to present even our highly developed Germany with one of its greatest challenges.
After a good 2 years, the pandemic and the fight against it is difficult for all of us to bear. We are all longing for normality. We realize that acceptance of the protective measures and the vaccination campaign is now also "suffering" in the middle of society. After such a long time, this is human and completely normal. It is also normal and constitutionally protected in a democracy to be able to express your opinion freely and publicly. Freedom of opinion is a very valuable asset and a cornerstone of our democracy! No question about it, but always in compliance with the rules and conditions for each individual demonstration event, which are legally verifiable in our democratic Germany.
All the more reason for me to ask you all:
For all your displeasure about some of the regulatory confusion over the last 24 months and the waiting times for vaccinations or tests, do not lose faith in the state authorities and our democracy! Continue to exercise patience and solidarity! Only together will we be able to defeat the coronavirus and keep our urban society close together!
Figuratively speaking, the corona pandemic is not a mountain that needs to be climbed, but rather a whole mountain range that needs to be conquered.
What comforts me, gives me courage and strengthens me is the certainty that I am not alone on this "rocky road", but have many companions by my side.
It is therefore very important to me to say "thank you" to everyone who has kept our city and our community going in these difficult times and continues to do so:
My thanks go to the employees in the health service, the fire departments, the aid organizations, the clinics, doctors' surgeries, retirement and nursing homes and care services, the municipal public order service and the police, who have been at the forefront of the challenges of the past two pandemic years.
I would like to sincerely thank everyone who, for example in daycare centers, schools, shipping companies, supermarkets, retail stores, hairdressing salons, buses and trains and our critical infrastructure, did their best every day to ensure that everything we have taken for granted over the years could continue to function.
I would also like to thank all those who, despite the lockdown and contact restrictions, have continued to get involved in their clubs, associations, church communities or simply in the neighborhood and have ensured that humanity and the "we-feeling" have been and continue to be lived and experienced.
We are all proud of you! This is the only way we will emerge from the coronavirus crisis and the social crisis it has caused in the long term.
I would like to end my speech with the moving anthem by one of the greatest musicians of all time, John Lennon, for all people who are looking for harmony and peace in the world:
"Imagine all the people
Livin`life in peace!"