August 1992, Rostock, former East Germany. Police withdraw as fascists petrol bomb a refugee centre & the home of Vietnamese guest workers while 3000 spectators stood by and clapped. Using film from inside the houses & interviews with anti-fascists, the Vietnamese, police, bureaucrats, neo-nazis & residents, a story of political collusion and fear unfolds.
From Wikipedia
From August 22–24 1992 a violent riot took place in Rostock-Lichtenhagen; it was the worst mob attack against foreigners in postwar Germany. Although there were stones and petrol bombs thrown at an apartment block that housed asylum seekers, no one was killed. At the height of the riots, several hundred militant right-wing extremists were involved, and about 3,000 neighbourhood onlookers stood by, supporting them.
The initial response of authorities and politicians was heavily criticised. Prior to the riots, there had been for days, in some newspapers, veiled warnings of an impending melee. Police and politicians seemed reluctant to respond and when they did respond, the response was inadequate to meet the need. Outside the building where the refugees were housed, several hundred asylum seekers had been camping for several days with little or no access to basic facilities, leading to escalating tensions in the neighbourhood.
Between August 22–26, 1992, there were 370 provisional arrests and 408 preliminary investigations relating to the riots. Among the arrested were 110 people from the former West Germany, 217 from Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, including 147 from Rostock and another 37 from the former East Germany. During the riot, 204 police officers were injured.
