A prominent German history professor and author believes the Cologne rape scandal on New Year’s Eve was a result of the German man’s inability to fight back and protect women.

Jorg Baberowski — a history professor at Humboldt University in Berlin and author of “Spaces of Violence” — says German men have become less aggressive over time, and have too much trust in authorities for protection. Close to 500 women reported getting sexually assaulted during the celebrations in Cologne on New Year’s Eve, but not a single suspect has been found guilty so far.

“We see that men no longer know how to deal with violence,” Baberowski said at a philosophy festival in Cologne Thursday, according to Die Welt. “Thank God.”

While it might have added to the sexual assault tally on New Year’s Eve, Baberowski thinks it’s a good thing that Germans can’t fight. He said authorities risk losing their monopoly on violence in the long run if citizens would start taking matters in their own hands.

Baberowski further criticized the response from authorities during and after the sexual assaults. A majority of the perpetrators have not been found and the ones that have been identified are unlikely to be sentenced to jail.

The lack of response can lead to repeated incidents, Baberowski said, because the perpetrators know they can get away with it.

“These people should have been immediately put in jail, then [they] would have learned something for life,” Baberowski said.

The city of Cologne Friday announced it will add a “protection zone” with added security for women to avoid a repeat at the next New Year’s celebration.

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