The influence of citizens' protest movements on policymaking : a study in the context of COVID-19- related border restrictions at the German-Polish and German-Swiss borders

The COVID-19 pandemic that dominated the year 2020 posed new challenges to policymakers and citizens. Containment measures against the spread of the pandemic across borders led to border restrictions that affected not only the economy but also citizens and their work, social, and daily lives. As a result of these massive restrictions, there were protest movements against the COVID-19-related border restrictions. This study examines the influence that the protest movements at the German-Polish and German-Swiss borders had on policy making during the first COVID-19 wave from March to mid-June. The theoretical basis for this is the elaboration of possibilities of political influence that citizens can use, as well as a theoretical basis of protest movements and their characterizations. The research design features a secondary data analysis of policy documents, newspaper articles and journals that provide data on the applied restraints at the borders under study, protest movements and resulting policy responses.