Andreas Noack
© YouTube
A doctor in Germany, Dr. Andreas Noack, was arrested by the Police on Wednesday in what appears to be a gross violation of personal liberty. The reason for his arrest is not yet clear but he was arrested while live-streaming on YouTube from his own home. The Police barged into his home when he was live on his YouTube channel.


The manner of his arrest presents some extremely disturbing scenes. He appeared too shocked to respond while the Police continued to yell at him until he lied down in the ground. The arrest of Dr. Andreas Noack occurred after the passage of the 'Infection Protection Law' which was protested heavily by vast sections of the German population. The arrested doctor was supposedly providing medical assistance to anti-lockdown protesters.

According to reports, "The reasons for the police raid and arrest ... have not yet been officially revealed. However, there are rumors [unconfirmed reports] that Dr. Andreas Noack provided medical assistance to hundreds of protestors during lockdown protests against the German government." Reportedly, Dr. Andreas Noack was under investigation for "being non-compliant with the COVID-19 lockdown laws enacted by the German government."

The 'Infection Protection Law' has drawn a lot of flak and has been compared by some to the Nazi era Enabling Act. Like the law that was passed in 1933, the recently passed law also confers certain legislative powers to the government, which hitherto rested only with the Legislature, that is, the Parliament. The Infection Protection Law provides the government with a legal basis to restrict the fundamental rights guaranteed by the German Constitution.

The German government has until now relied on decrees to curb the pandemic, a move that was criticised by all parties and deemed to be unconstitutional by some. The newly passed law rectifies that problem for the German government. Furthermore, as per provisions of the law, an infected person or a person suspected to be suffering from the infection can be ordered to refrain from practicing certain professions. It also provides for quarantines and curfews.

Thus, the law would permit the government to legally enforce lockdowns which could entail the shutting down of shops and impose restrictions on social contact, rules for mandatory masks, the stoppage of sporting events and other such measures to prevent the spread of the Coronavirus pandemic. The passage of the law was protested by numerous Germans and anti-lockdown sentiments have been steadily rising over time.