A campaign for real peace — not “peace at any price”

Every year at Easter, the so-called “Ostermarsch” marches — originally born in the 1960s from anti-nuclear and anti-war ideals — return to the streets.

But since 2014, and especially since russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, these marches have changed. Many of them have become platforms for narratives that benefit the aggressor — not the victims.

This year, over 90 Easter marches are planned across Germany. Their message no longer speaks of global justice. Instead, they echo Kremlin propaganda and call for disarmament — not of the aggressor, but of the defenders.

Their central demand is to stop strengthening Europe’s ability to defend itself.

“Disarmament instead of defense” — that’s the message we find in many of the organizers’  statements, if we read them with awareness of the global situation. The logic is simple: where there are no weapons, there is peace. But in a world where dictatorships attack democracies, that logic kills.

Disarmament might make sense if you are the aggressor and want to secure a new status-quo – for the victim, it’s a death sentence. For Ukraine, it means genocide and destruction. For Europe, it means helplessness in the face of future russian aggression.

And this is happening at the worst possible moment:
🇺🇸 The U.S. is wavering in its support.
🤝 russia is holding direct negotiations with Washington that bypass Europe and apparently serve only Kremlin interests.
🕊️ “Peace at any price” is becoming a dominant narrative — even if the price is Ukrainian lives, occupied cities, and a defenseless Europe. But in the end, there will still be no peace.

While russians systematically violate international conventions by killing civilians and prisoners of war, showing no intention of ending their aggression, calls for “peace” ultimately serve the Kremlin’s interests. A ceasefire forced upon Ukraine by the US and fueled by russian narratives would freeze occupation, reward war crimes, and invite further invasions.

The very idea of peace has been weaponized. And parts of the German peace movement are helping to spread it.

That’s why we fight back.

At Vitsche, we are launching a campaign for a real and just peace — against the false prophets of surrender. Because wars are fought not only on the battlefield, but in people’s minds.

If we surrender truth, we surrender everything.

We will organize a performative counter-action during the Berlin Ostermarsch, and create powerful, shareable visual content that shows what peace truly means: justice and security in freedom.

We all want peace. But if it isn’t just, it isn’t peace at all.

What we need:

Your financial support.
We are a volunteer-led civil society organization, working with project-based funding. Unlike propaganda networks, we don’t have big donors — we rely on you — people who know that real peace is more than the absence of war.

👉 Every euro helps us fight disinformation, support Ukraine, and counter the wave of pseudo-pacifist propaganda.

📍 Donate. Share. Act.
https://vitsche.org/donate/