Mass sexual assaults in Cologne on New Years Eve

[Cellardoor1]

I've just read this and I'm shocked that such a thing could happen. A group of around 1,000 men gathered and assaulted at least 60 women and girls and also pickpocketed people. Apparently the news wasn't released until now out of fears it could stir up tension as the men appeared to be of Arab/North African appearance, possibly refugees.

abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/cologne-police-chief-condemns-sex-assaults-years-eve-36083833

Is the place likely to have CCTV?

cfs not much in the square/route itself. just in/near the entrances of the train stations.
germans are not very keen on surveilance

This news is dreadful, what is happening to our world. We seem to be going backwards and society is controlled by the spin of the media and dishonest officials. Trying to explain this downward social spiral to our children is so difficult. What is to be done?

How utterly horrifying

I cannot beleiev this hasn't been more widely reported. Presumably becuse the victims are all women

The BBC article has been extended now.

this hasn't been more widely reported. Presumably because the victims are all women

I wish I didn't agree with your analysis :( One report says the police 'ridiculed' a victim for not having taken safety measures. WTF?

Possibly not reported due to the ethnicity of the attackers and the fear of being viewed as racist.

Yes, women are always the last group to be considered. The rights of men of colour are more important.

Good god, I feel sick

Where the fuck were the police?

Scary stuff

CCTV and prosecutions don't help people that have been assaulted! A mass gathering of drunken men would have been kettled or broken up in UK, we have specific laws to prevent people gathering in this way, I'm guessing Germany don't (OK I'm not saying I approve of those UK laws, but this is an occasion where they would be put to beneficial use).

I wonder if the attackers were taking advantage of the fact that the police would have been on high alert for terrorist attacks and might have been concentrating on this to the detriment of spotting other types of crime?

it seems quite sophisticated to me.
large group of men splitting up into smaller (10-15) groups who then target one or a small group of women.
just the scale makes me think of a flash-mob type szenario.

makes me angry, this sort of shit.

This is bloody ridiculous and something really needs to be done.

Its frightening that the "mob mentality" of 1000 men was to assault women, that's ridiculous.

Moreshabbythanchic - well said, more than likely. It's scandalous that things like this could be kept quiet. When are all the liberal "do gooders" going to wake up and see what's happening to our countries? Our whole way of life is under threat.

I used to hang out quite a bit in Cologne, last time I went there I felt really quite intimidated at the station. There has been a definite shift in demographic and atmosphere. Make of that what you will.

Yes. I think its worth stressing those numbers in a way though. This is nothing to do with any perceived vulnerability of women. With those numbers there is nothing any woman in the vicinity could have done to avoid them. They could just as easily have targeted men, or children.

I'm a "liberal do-gooder", Bluebell. I think criminals who assault people should be punished.

If there's an underlying cultural misapprehension to the assault, I think that should be addressed.

I don't see our way(s) of life as so fragile that we are unable to protect them.

Hoe awful

How!

What I'm trying to say there clumsily is that we really don't want a civil society that is in any way based on the old 'might is right' rule.

If the authorities don't stamp down on this I think it will lead to violence in the streets.
Mrwriter it's not ridiculous to them. Look at Egypt. Women are routinely sexually assaulted, even raped in crowd situations, and that is women who are covered.

I agree with bluebell.

These men have zero, absolutely zero respect for women.

In 50 year's time, we will ask ourselves 'What have you we done?'.

It's all going very wrong, very quickly.

Oh, but we wouldn't want to be racist now, would we?

Totally horrifying.

bungo the only men that would have been targeted would have been openly gay men , and possibly Jewish men. Stop with the denial.

And we are welcoming these men with open arms.

Once again, it's women who suffer.

If 60 men had been assaulted the situation would have been much, much different.

Why are we so incredibly lenient with these people? Why?