Devotees take part in the first of a nine-day pre-dawn mass, locally called "Misa de Gallo", before Christmas at a church in Las Pinas, Metro Manila December 16, 2014. The pre-dawn mass is considered one of the most popular traditions among Fili
In Photo: Devotees take part in the first of a nine-day pre-dawn mass, locally called "Misa de Gallo", before Christmas at a church in Las Pinas, Metro Manila December 16, 2014. The pre-dawn mass is considered one of the most popular traditions among Filipinos during the Christmas season, the longest holiday celebration in the predominantly Roman Catholic country. REUTERS/Erik De Castro

Eastern Germany saw a record number of protesters holding an anti-Islamic rally on Monday. Around 17,000 people celebrated a far-right populist movement by singing Christmas carols.

The "Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamisation of the Occident" has emerged within a few weeks, even though there were only a few hundreds in the city of Dresden supporting it in October. PEGIDA followers braved hostile weather, wet and cold, to hold the rally. The followers, who insisted that they did not promote Nazi ideals, said that they were patriots who were insecure about the existence of the Christian-rooted traditions and culture in the country. They often accuse the media of false reporting and mainstream politicians of betraying them. PEGIDA followers gathered outside the Semperoper concert hall. The Telegraph reported that the number of demonstrators, according to police, was 15,000 last week and around 17,500 on Monday.

Former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder said that the people of Germany should initiate a "rebellion of the decent" against such rallies. He said that such public reaction was required against the PEGIDA rallies. Jochen Bohl, the Protestant bishop of Saxony state, said that the anti-Islamic protesters were exploiting a Christian tradition and a Christian symbol for their political purposes. Meanwhile, the management of the opera house showed its distaste for the rally by switching off the lights of the building. It also had flying flags outside reading the first line of the national constitution of Germany: "Open your eyes", "Open your hearts", "Open doors" and "Human dignity is sacrosanct."

Even though PEGIDA managed to attract larger crowds, its clone groups in other cities like Wuerzburg, Kassel and Bonn could only draw 200 followers each. Counter-demonstrations, on the contrary, drew around 20,000 followers nationwide. Around 4,500 counter-demonstrators, on the other hand, marched through Dresden under the slogan "Dresden Nazi-free." They warned that Germany had no place for xenophobia and racism as they reminded that such practices had once motivated the Holocaust. Around 12,000 people rallied in Munich where the anti-PEGIDA march had the banner "Make space - Refugees are welcome."

No major case of violence was reported during the rallies. Police, however, said that eight people had been temporarily detained.

Contact the writer: s.mukhopadhyay@IBTimes.com.au