Freie Universität Berlin was not associated with organizing the demonstration on February 8, 2024, in any way. It did not grant approval for the event to take place or for the participants to congregate on university property. The event took place on public property.

Should an activity not approved by the university encroach onto university property, Freie Universität reserves the right to deny access to its premises and to have any participants in such activities removed from university property.

Freie Universität Berlin has already filed charges with regard to the content of posters advertising the aforementioned demonstration on February 8, 2024. 

Generally speaking, everyone in Germany has the right to freedom of assembly. Rallies and demonstrations held in public must be registered with the relevant authorities (in this case, the Berlin police department) with at least forty-eight hours’ notice before the organizers can officially invite people to attend their event. In line with Berlin’s Freedom of Assembly Act (Versammlungsfreiheitsgesetz), demonstrations that are held in public and have been authorized by the police may be allowed even on Freie Universität Berlin’s premises if the space used to assemble is freely accessible to the public.

University members are not permitted to hold demonstrations or similar political events in enclosed spaces on Freie Universität Berlin’s premises. An event of this nature would theoretically require the approval, or at the very least the authorization, of Freie Universität Berlin, in order to go ahead. The university has approved no such event or demonstration. 

We are currently experiencing an alarming increase in the prevalence of hateful rhetoric and hate speech in our society. Antisemitism, racism, and discrimination are widespread societal issues that, unfortunately, also occur on university campuses. Freie Universität has filed charges against an individual based on recent social media activity. We expressly and fully distance ourselves from the hateful remarks made by this individual as conveyed in the materials presented on social media. The incident did not take place on university property, and to the best of our knowledge the person in questions is not a member of Freie Universität Berlin. The university has already filed criminal charges in accordance with Section 158 of the German Code of Criminal Procedure (Strafprozessordnung, StPO). (Last updated: February 13, 2024)