topics
tools
Expatica countries
Index Last Var.(%)
BEL 20 2119.44 0.28
DAX 6339.94 0.38
IBEX 30 6543 0.13
CAC 40 3047.94 0.32
FTSE 100 5351.53 0.03
AEX 292.76 0.23
DJIA 12454.83 -0.60
Nasdaq 2837.53 -0.07
FTSE MIB 13154.8 0.36
TSX Composite 11576.47 0.09
ASX 4081.2 -0.61
Hang seng 18713.41 0.25
Straits Times 2772.75 -0.24
ISEQ 20 500.94 1.55
You are here: Home News German News Requests to see Stasi files unabated 20 years on

German News

archive
Enlarge font Decrease font Text size


28/05/2009Requests to see Stasi files unabated 20 years on

More than 1.6 million requests for access have been made since the archives were officially opened in 1991.

Berlin -- Germans are still applying in droves to see files kept on them by the feared Stasi secret police nearly 20 years after the Berlin Wall fell, the head of the vast archives said Tuesday.

Marianne Birthler, who manages the miles of intelligence files communist East Germany kept on its own citizens and many Westerners, told reporters that interest in the records had anything but abated two decades on.

"More than 100,000 applications to look at files were submitted in 2007, somewhat fewer last year with 87,000, but demand rose again in the first months of 2009" at a rate of about 10,000 per month, she said.

"It could be related to the (20th) anniversary year,” she added. “At the same time, we have observed time and again that many people are only asking to see their files now because they have apparently needed time to prepare themselves to confront their pasts."

The East Berlin-based Ministry of State Security, known as the Stasi, was one of the world's most effective instruments for state repression during its nearly 40 years of existence.

It employed more than 270,000 people during the Cold War, making the East German population the most intensely monitored in the Eastern bloc.

Thousands of spies were unmasked after the Wall fell on November 9, 1989 when the Stasi files became available to the public in the years following national unification in 1990.

More than 1.6 million requests for access have been made since the archives were officially opened in 1991.

It was then that many East Germans learned that their friends, colleagues and even family members had been keeping tabs on them as "unofficial collaborators" of the Stasi.

The Stasi records are still believed to hold bombshells, such as the revelation last week that the policeman who shot student demonstrator Benno Ohnesorg dead in West Berlin in 1967 worked for the Stasi.

The killing radicalised a large faction of the left-wing student movement at the time, and marked a historical turning point for many of that generation.

Birthler said there is no evidence, however, the shooting was ordered by East Germany.

AFP/Expatica


0 reactions to this article

Be the first person to add a comment

General rating: Not rated yet

Rate article:    Add my rating



0 reactions to this article

Be the first person to add a comment
Discussion Forums

Legal Problems in Germany

Visa employment help

Australians in Germany

BUY FAKE PASSPORT, DRIVING LICENSE,ID CARD

Irish in Germany

BUY FAKE PASSPORT, DRIVING LICENSE,ID CARD

Canadian in Germany

BUY FAKE PASSPORT, DRIVING LICENSE,ID CARD

Discuss German Culture

BUY FAKE PASSPORT, DRIVING LICENSE,ID CARD

participate in the forums

Inside Expatica
The ABCs of the German school system

The ABCs of the German school system

What you need to know about German schools and daycare.

German immigration and residency regulations

German immigration and residency regulations

Want to move to Germany but haven’t figured out the details? Check out Expatica’s overview of the German permit system.

Driving in Berlin: Rules, habits and fines

Driving in Berlin: Rules, habits and fines

In part one of our two part series, we cover the driving culture in Berlin, where to park and buy gas and, most importantly, the laws.

Looking for work in Germany: The in depth version

Looking for work in Germany: The in depth version

Our comprehensive guide includes information on how to find work, recruitment agencies, employment contracts and labour law.