Human rights in Germany
Encyclopedia
Human rights in Germany
are protected extensively by the Grundgesetz
. The country has ratified most international human rights treaties. Reports from independent organizations such as Amnesty International
certify a high level of compliance with human rights, while still pointing out several issues, in particular police brutality
and mistreatment of refugees.
, which came into effect in 1949, puts a particular emphasis on human rights. Its first sentence, "Human dignity is inviolable", is being interpreted as protecting the sum of human rights. This paragraph is protected by an "eternity clause" and cannot be changed. It has wide-ranging effects on judicial practice; for example, it has been used to justify the right on Informational self-determination
in a 1983 finding of the Federal Constitutional Court of Germany
.
However, following experiences from the Weimar Republic
, Germany sees itself as a wehrhafte Demokratie
(fortified democracy); actions targeted towards removing the democratic order are not covered by human rights.
The constitution guarantees all rights from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
(which itself is not legally binding), with the exception of an unlimited right for asylum.
The ratification of the European Convention on Human Rights
allows citizens to appeal to the European Court of Human Rights
.
Mandatory military service
for male citizens was established in 1956. At any time, conscientious objector
s can opt to do Zivildienst
(civilian service) instead. For the time of both services, many human rights such as freedom of movement
are suspended. Since 1 July 2011, the government will no longer exercise its right under this article, that is, military service is currently voluntary in Germany. However, there are no plans to abolish laws allowing conscription.
Germany is also a member of the United Nations Human Rights Council
. It recognizes the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court
.
reports of 2005 and 2006 mainly criticize police brutality
, mistreatment of refugees, and racist attacks
The 2008 Freedom in the World report by US-funded Freedom House
gives Germany a score of "1" (the best possible) for both political rights and civil liberties
.
must be ordered by a judge
. Usually, a suspect cannot be detained for more than six months without a conviction. The courts may order that a person be detained indefinitely if he is convicted of particularly serious crimes and has completed his sentence but is judged, after expert testimony, to be a danger to the public (Sicherungsverwahrung).
The German citizen Khalid El-Masri
was abducted by the CIA in 2005 and interred without trial for months, although innocent. German intelligence
was informed early about this, but undertook nothing, which is currently subject to an intense political debate.
(incitement of the people) is a crime, defined as spreading hate against or insult against a part of the population. In 1994, a paragraph explicitly forbidding denial of Nazi crimes was added.
These practices were criticized by a United States Department of State
report.
of Reporters Without Borders
rates Germany at place 18 of 175 countries.
In 2005, minister of the interior Otto Schily
authorized a raid of offices of the periodical Cicero, which was criticized as an attack on press freedom by part of the German press. The raid was based on a substantiated suspicion of leaking of state secrets. However, on February 27, 2007, the Federal Constitutional Court
ruled that suspicion that a journalist is aiding the betrayal of state secrets is not sufficient to warrant a search, and thus the raid was illegal. The finding has been widely regarded as a strengthening of press freedom.
A scandal regarding spying on journalists by the secret service Bundesnachrichtendienst
, starting in May 2006, has not been cleared up yet.
as a human rights issue in Europe (see main article: trafficking in human beings). The end of communism and collapse of the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia has contributed to an increase in human trafficking, with the majority of victims being women forced into prostitution. http://www.coe.int/T/E/Com/Files/Themes/trafficking/ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/3979725.stm Germany is a transit and destination country for persons, primarily women, trafficked mainly from Central and Eastern Europe and from Africa for the purpose of sexual exploitation. Russia alone accounted for one-quarter of the 1,235 identified victims reported in 2003, the latest year for which statistics are available. For the first time, Germany’s statistics included German nationals who numbered 127. http://www.state.gov/g/tip/rls/tiprpt/2005/46613.htm http://www.catwinternational.org/factbook/Germany.php
In December, the regional court of Dessau acquitted two police officers of killing Oury Jalloh as a result of negligence. Oury Jalloh had died in 2005 from heat shock caused by a fire in his cell while in police custody. In its oral reasons for the judgment, the court strongly criticized the testimonies of most of the police officers who were witnesses in the court case.
and other organizations reported several incidents of mistreatment of refugees. Also, the practice of deporting asylum seekers to countries such as Afghanistan
, Iraq
and Kosovo
, where their safety is unclear, is widely criticized.
. However, there were some related incidents.
In 2002, Frankfurt
's police vice president Wolfgang Daschner ordered a subordinate officer to threaten the suspect of a kidnapping to use force in order to get information on the whereabouts of the abductee (the abductee was killed shortly after the kidnapping, but the suspect told the police that the child was still alive, and Daschner decided to break the law to save the child's life. Daschner himself wrote down an official note of his actions). This triggered an emotional debate over the legality of such measures. Daschner was convicted to the lowest possible penalty of a fine. Daschner and the subordinate officer remained in duty.
In a trial against terror suspect Mounir El Motassadeq
, a court used evidence provided by US authorities, despite widespread evidence of torture in US detainment camps
. The conviction was rejected in appeal due to lack of evidence. In January 2007 he was condemned for 15 years in detention.
(NPD) and the communist platform of the Left Party
, are under surveillance from the Verfassungsschutz ("Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution"). The use of police informers has sometimes been criticized as excessive. A trial against the NPD was aborted, because it became apparent that many actions of the NPD were actually controlled by the Verfassungsschutz. In addition to parties, the German Government placed the Church of Scientology
and its members in Germany under surveillance by the Verfassungsschutz since 1997 for the alleged goal of abolishing the order based on the German Grundgesetz. See also: Scientology in Germany
.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
are protected extensively by the Grundgesetz
Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany
The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany is the constitution of Germany. It was formally approved on 8 May 1949, and, with the signature of the Allies of World War II on 12 May, came into effect on 23 May, as the constitution of those states of West Germany that were initially included...
. The country has ratified most international human rights treaties. Reports from independent organizations such as Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
certify a high level of compliance with human rights, while still pointing out several issues, in particular police brutality
Police brutality
Police brutality is the intentional use of excessive force, usually physical, but potentially also in the form of verbal attacks and psychological intimidation, by a police officer....
and mistreatment of refugees.
Law
The constitution of Germany, the GrundgesetzBasic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany
The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany is the constitution of Germany. It was formally approved on 8 May 1949, and, with the signature of the Allies of World War II on 12 May, came into effect on 23 May, as the constitution of those states of West Germany that were initially included...
, which came into effect in 1949, puts a particular emphasis on human rights. Its first sentence, "Human dignity is inviolable", is being interpreted as protecting the sum of human rights. This paragraph is protected by an "eternity clause" and cannot be changed. It has wide-ranging effects on judicial practice; for example, it has been used to justify the right on Informational self-determination
Informational self-determination
The term informational self-determination was first used in the context of a German constitutional ruling relating to personal information collected during the 1983 census....
in a 1983 finding of the Federal Constitutional Court of Germany
Federal Constitutional Court of Germany
The Federal Constitutional Court is a special court established by the Grundgesetz, the German basic law...
.
However, following experiences from the Weimar Republic
Weimar Republic
The Weimar Republic is the name given by historians to the parliamentary republic established in 1919 in Germany to replace the imperial form of government...
, Germany sees itself as a wehrhafte Demokratie
Streitbare Demokratie
The political system of the Federal Republic of Germany is also called wehrhafte or streitbare Demokratie . This implies that the government , the parliament and the judiciary are given extensive powers to defend the freiheitlich-demokratische Grundordnung against those who want to abolish...
(fortified democracy); actions targeted towards removing the democratic order are not covered by human rights.
The constitution guarantees all rights from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is a declaration adopted by the United Nations General Assembly . The Declaration arose directly from the experience of the Second World War and represents the first global expression of rights to which all human beings are inherently entitled...
(which itself is not legally binding), with the exception of an unlimited right for asylum.
The ratification of the European Convention on Human Rights
European Convention on Human Rights
The Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms is an international treaty to protect human rights and fundamental freedoms in Europe. Drafted in 1950 by the then newly formed Council of Europe, the convention entered into force on 3 September 1953...
allows citizens to appeal to the European Court of Human Rights
European Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is a supra-national court established by the European Convention on Human Rights and hears complaints that a contracting state has violated the human rights enshrined in the Convention and its protocols. Complaints can be brought by individuals or...
.
Mandatory military service
Military service
Military service, in its simplest sense, is service by an individual or group in an army or other militia, whether as a chosen job or as a result of an involuntary draft . Some nations require a specific amount of military service from every citizen...
for male citizens was established in 1956. At any time, conscientious objector
Conscientious objector
A conscientious objector is an "individual who has claimed the right to refuse to perform military service" on the grounds of freedom of thought, conscience, and/or religion....
s can opt to do Zivildienst
Zivildienst
Zivildienst is the civilian branch of the national service systems in Austria and Switzerland. In Germany as well Zivildienst was the alternative service to military service until suspension of conscription in 2011...
(civilian service) instead. For the time of both services, many human rights such as freedom of movement
Freedom of movement
Freedom of movement, mobility rights or the right to travel is a human right concept that the constitutions of numerous states respect...
are suspended. Since 1 July 2011, the government will no longer exercise its right under this article, that is, military service is currently voluntary in Germany. However, there are no plans to abolish laws allowing conscription.
Treaties
| UN core treaties | Participation of Germany | CoE core treaties | Participation of Germany |
| Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination The International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination is a United Nations convention. A second-generation human rights instrument, the Convention commits its members to the elimination of racial discrimination and the promotion of understanding among all races... |
Ratified in 1969 | European Convention on Human Rights European Convention on Human Rights The Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms is an international treaty to protect human rights and fundamental freedoms in Europe. Drafted in 1950 by the then newly formed Council of Europe, the convention entered into force on 3 September 1953... |
Ratified in 1952 |
| International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights is a multilateral treaty adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on December 16, 1966, and in force from March 23, 1976... |
Ratified in 1973 | Protocol 1 (ECHR) | Ratified in 1957 |
| First Optional Protocol First Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights The First Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights is an international treaty establishing an individual complaint mechanism for the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights . It was adopted by the UN General Assembly on 16 December 1966, and entered... (ICCPR) |
Accession in 1993 | Protocol 4 (ECHR) | Ratified in 1968 |
| Second Optional Protocol Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights The Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, aiming at the abolition of the death penalty is a side agreement to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. It was created on 15 December 1989, and entered into force on 11 July 1991. As of... (ICCPR) |
Ratified in 1992 | Protocol 6 (ECHR) | Ratified in 1989 |
| International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights is a multilateral treaty adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on December 16, 1966, and in force from January 3, 1976... |
Ratified in 1973 | Protocol 7 (ECHR) | Signed in 1985 |
| Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women The Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women is an international convention adopted in 1979 by the United Nations General Assembly.... |
Ratified in 1985 | Protocol 12 (ECHR) | Signed in 2000 |
| Optional Protocol Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women The Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women is an international treaty which establishes complaint and inquiry mechanisms for the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women... (CEDAW) |
Ratified in 2002 | Protocol 13 (ECHR) | Ratified in 2004 |
| United Nations Convention Against Torture United Nations Convention Against Torture The United Nations Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment is an international human rights instrument, under the review of the United Nations, that aims to prevent torture around the world.... |
Ratified in 1990 | European Social Charter European Social Charter The European Social Charter is a Council of Europe treaty which was adopted in 1961 and revised in 1996. The Revised Charter came into force in 1999 and is gradually replacing the initial 1961 treaty... |
Ratified in 1965 |
| Optional Protocol (CAT) | Ratified in 2008 | Additional Protocol of 1988 (ESC) | Signed in 1988 |
| Convention on the Rights of the Child Convention on the Rights of the Child The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child is a human rights treaty setting out the civil, political, economic, social, health and cultural rights of children... |
Ratified in 1992 | Additional Protocol of 1995 (ESC) | Not signed |
| Optional Protocol on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict Optional protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict The United Nations General Assembly adopted the Optional protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict to the Convention on the Rights of the Child in Annex I of a resolution on 25 May 2000.The protocol came into force on 12 February 2002.... (CRC) |
Ratified in 2004 | Revised European Social Charter | Signed in 2007 |
| Optional Protocol on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography (CRC) | Ratified in 2009 | European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment The European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment was adopted by the member states of the Council of Europe, meeting at Strasbourg on 26 November 1987. It was subsequently amended by two Protocols that entered into force on 1 March 2002... |
Ratified in 1990 |
| Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families | Not signed | European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages The European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages is a European treaty adopted in 1992 under the auspices of the Council of Europe to protect and promote historical regional and minority languages in Europe... |
Ratified in 1998 |
| Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities is an international human rights instrument of the United Nations intended to protect the rights and dignity of persons with disabilities... |
Ratified in 2009 | Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities The Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities was signed on February 1995 by 22 member States of the Council of Europe .... |
Ratified in 1997 |
| Optional Protocol Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities The Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities is a side-agreement to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. It was adopted on 13 December 2006, and entered into force at the same time as its parent Convention on 3 May 2008... (CRPD) |
Ratified in 2009 | Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings The Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings is a regional human rights treaty of the international human rights law by the Council of Europe... |
Signed in 2005 |
Germany is also a member of the United Nations Human Rights Council
United Nations Human Rights Council
The United Nations Human Rights Council is an inter-governmental body within the United Nations System. The UNHRC is the successor to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights , and is a subsidiary body of the United Nations General Assembly...
. It recognizes the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court
International Criminal Court
The International Criminal Court is a permanent tribunal to prosecute individuals for genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression .It came into being on 1 July 2002—the date its founding treaty, the Rome Statute of the...
.
Reports
The Amnesty InternationalAmnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
reports of 2005 and 2006 mainly criticize police brutality
Police brutality
Police brutality is the intentional use of excessive force, usually physical, but potentially also in the form of verbal attacks and psychological intimidation, by a police officer....
, mistreatment of refugees, and racist attacks
The 2008 Freedom in the World report by US-funded Freedom House
Freedom House
Freedom House is an international non-governmental organization based in Washington, D.C. that conducts research and advocacy on democracy, political freedom and human rights...
gives Germany a score of "1" (the best possible) for both political rights and civil liberties
Civil liberties
Civil liberties are rights and freedoms that provide an individual specific rights such as the freedom from slavery and forced labour, freedom from torture and death, the right to liberty and security, right to a fair trial, the right to defend one's self, the right to own and bear arms, the right...
.
Custody
The death penalty is abolished. RemandDetention of suspects
The detention of suspects is the process of keeping a person who has been arrested in a police-cell, remand prison or other detention centre before trial or sentencing. One criticism of pretrial detention is that eventual acquittal can be a somewhat hollow victory, in that there is no way to...
must be ordered by a judge
Judge
A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as part of a panel of judges. The powers, functions, method of appointment, discipline, and training of judges vary widely across different jurisdictions. The judge is supposed to conduct the trial impartially and in an open...
. Usually, a suspect cannot be detained for more than six months without a conviction. The courts may order that a person be detained indefinitely if he is convicted of particularly serious crimes and has completed his sentence but is judged, after expert testimony, to be a danger to the public (Sicherungsverwahrung).
The German citizen Khalid El-Masri
Khalid El-Masri
Khalid El-Masri is a German citizen who was kidnapped in the Republic of Macedonia, flown to Afghanistan, allegedly beaten, stripped, raped, and interrogated and tortured by the CIA for several months as a part of the War on Terror, and then released...
was abducted by the CIA in 2005 and interred without trial for months, although innocent. German intelligence
Bundesnachrichtendienst
The Bundesnachrichtendienst [ˌbʊndəsˈnaːχʁɪçtnˌdiːnst] is the foreign intelligence agency of Germany, directly subordinated to the Chancellor's Office. Its headquarters are in Pullach near Munich, and Berlin . The BND has 300 locations in Germany and foreign countries...
was informed early about this, but undertook nothing, which is currently subject to an intense political debate.
Freedom of Speech
Freedom of speech is guaranteed by the constitution. However, VolksverhetzungVolksverhetzung
Volksverhetzung is a concept in German criminal law that bans the incitement of hatred against a segment of the population. It often applies in, though it is not limited to, trials relating to Holocaust denial in Germany...
(incitement of the people) is a crime, defined as spreading hate against or insult against a part of the population. In 1994, a paragraph explicitly forbidding denial of Nazi crimes was added.
These practices were criticized by a United States Department of State
United States Department of State
The United States Department of State , is the United States federal executive department responsible for international relations of the United States, equivalent to the foreign ministries of other countries...
report.
Freedom of Assembly
Open-air public rallies require (generally) prior announcement to the local authorities, but no permits. Local authorities can prohibit rallies only on grounds of public safety concerns or involvement of outlawed organizations.Freedom of Press
Freedom of press is generally very established in Germany; the 2009 Press Freedom IndexPress Freedom Index
The Press Freedom Index is an annual ranking of countries compiled and published by Reporters Without Borders based upon the organization's assessment of their press freedom records. Small countries, such as Andorra, are excluded from this report...
of Reporters Without Borders
Reporters Without Borders
Reporters Without Borders is a France-based international non-governmental organization that advocates freedom of the press. It was founded in 1985, by Robert Ménard, Rony Brauman and the journalist Jean-Claude Guillebaud. Jean-François Julliard has served as Secretary General since 2008...
rates Germany at place 18 of 175 countries.
In 2005, minister of the interior Otto Schily
Otto Schily
Otto Georg Schily was Federal Minister of the Interior of Germany from 1998 to 2005, in the cabinet of former German chancellor Gerhard Schröder. He is a member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany .-Biography:...
authorized a raid of offices of the periodical Cicero, which was criticized as an attack on press freedom by part of the German press. The raid was based on a substantiated suspicion of leaking of state secrets. However, on February 27, 2007, the Federal Constitutional Court
Federal Constitutional Court of Germany
The Federal Constitutional Court is a special court established by the Grundgesetz, the German basic law...
ruled that suspicion that a journalist is aiding the betrayal of state secrets is not sufficient to warrant a search, and thus the raid was illegal. The finding has been widely regarded as a strengthening of press freedom.
A scandal regarding spying on journalists by the secret service Bundesnachrichtendienst
Bundesnachrichtendienst
The Bundesnachrichtendienst [ˌbʊndəsˈnaːχʁɪçtnˌdiːnst] is the foreign intelligence agency of Germany, directly subordinated to the Chancellor's Office. Its headquarters are in Pullach near Munich, and Berlin . The BND has 300 locations in Germany and foreign countries...
, starting in May 2006, has not been cleared up yet.
Human trafficking
There has been a growing awareness of human traffickingHuman trafficking
Human trafficking is the illegal trade of human beings for the purposes of reproductive slavery, commercial sexual exploitation, forced labor, or a modern-day form of slavery...
as a human rights issue in Europe (see main article: trafficking in human beings). The end of communism and collapse of the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia has contributed to an increase in human trafficking, with the majority of victims being women forced into prostitution. http://www.coe.int/T/E/Com/Files/Themes/trafficking/ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/3979725.stm Germany is a transit and destination country for persons, primarily women, trafficked mainly from Central and Eastern Europe and from Africa for the purpose of sexual exploitation. Russia alone accounted for one-quarter of the 1,235 identified victims reported in 2003, the latest year for which statistics are available. For the first time, Germany’s statistics included German nationals who numbered 127. http://www.state.gov/g/tip/rls/tiprpt/2005/46613.htm http://www.catwinternational.org/factbook/Germany.php
Police brutality
Amana, A.Ö., died in a hospital on 5 March after falling into a coma while in police custody in Hagen on 17 February where he had been bound face-down. The Office of the Public Prosecutor terminated its investigations and found that the force used by the police was proportionate, despite the fact that since 2000, police officers have been trained not to restrain a person face-down because of the danger of asphyxia.In December, the regional court of Dessau acquitted two police officers of killing Oury Jalloh as a result of negligence. Oury Jalloh had died in 2005 from heat shock caused by a fire in his cell while in police custody. In its oral reasons for the judgment, the court strongly criticized the testimonies of most of the police officers who were witnesses in the court case.
Refugees
Amnesty InternationalAmnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
and other organizations reported several incidents of mistreatment of refugees. Also, the practice of deporting asylum seekers to countries such as Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
, Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
and Kosovo
Kosovo
Kosovo is a region in southeastern Europe. Part of the Ottoman Empire for more than five centuries, later the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija within Serbia...
, where their safety is unclear, is widely criticized.
Torture
There are no reports on systematic use of torture in GermanyGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. However, there were some related incidents.
In 2002, Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
's police vice president Wolfgang Daschner ordered a subordinate officer to threaten the suspect of a kidnapping to use force in order to get information on the whereabouts of the abductee (the abductee was killed shortly after the kidnapping, but the suspect told the police that the child was still alive, and Daschner decided to break the law to save the child's life. Daschner himself wrote down an official note of his actions). This triggered an emotional debate over the legality of such measures. Daschner was convicted to the lowest possible penalty of a fine. Daschner and the subordinate officer remained in duty.
In a trial against terror suspect Mounir El Motassadeq
Mounir El Motassadeq
Mounir el-Motassadeq was accused of being a member of al-Qaeda and of assisting some of the organizers of the September 11, 2001 attacks. He was initially convicted of involvement in the attack, but his sentence was set aside on appeal, then reinstated on further appeal...
, a court used evidence provided by US authorities, despite widespread evidence of torture in US detainment camps
Guantanamo Bay detainment camp
The Guantanamo Bay detention camp is a detainment and interrogation facility of the United States located within Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, Cuba. The facility was established in 2002 by the Bush Administration to hold detainees from the war in Afghanistan and later Iraq...
. The conviction was rejected in appeal due to lack of evidence. In January 2007 he was condemned for 15 years in detention.
Surveillance
Several parties, such as the National Democratic Party of GermanyNational Democratic Party of Germany
The National Democratic Party of Germany – The People's Union , is a far right German nationalist party. It was founded in 1964 a successor to the German Reich Party . Party statements self-identify as Germany's "only significant patriotic force"...
(NPD) and the communist platform of the Left Party
Left Party (Germany)
The Party of Democratic Socialism was a democratic socialist political party active in Germany from 1989 to 2007. It was the legal successor to the Socialist Unity Party , which ruled the German Democratic Republic until 1990. From 1990 through to 2005, the PDS had been seen as the left-wing...
, are under surveillance from the Verfassungsschutz ("Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution"). The use of police informers has sometimes been criticized as excessive. A trial against the NPD was aborted, because it became apparent that many actions of the NPD were actually controlled by the Verfassungsschutz. In addition to parties, the German Government placed the Church of Scientology
Church of Scientology
The Church of Scientology is an organization devoted to the practice and the promotion of the Scientology belief system. The Church of Scientology International is the Church of Scientology's parent organization, and is responsible for the overall ecclesiastical management, dissemination and...
and its members in Germany under surveillance by the Verfassungsschutz since 1997 for the alleged goal of abolishing the order based on the German Grundgesetz. See also: Scientology in Germany
Scientology in Germany
The Church of Scientology has been present in Germany since 1970. German authorities estimate that there are 5,000–6,000 active Scientologists in Germany today; the Church of Scientology gives a membership figure of around 30,000...
.
External links
- Archive of Germany reports by Amnesty InternationalAmnesty InternationalAmnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
. - 2008 Country report on Germany by Freedom HouseFreedom HouseFreedom House is an international non-governmental organization based in Washington, D.C. that conducts research and advocacy on democracy, political freedom and human rights...
. - Archive of Germany reports by Human Rights WatchHuman Rights WatchHuman Rights Watch is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Its headquarters are in New York City and it has offices in Berlin, Beirut, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Paris, San Francisco, Tokyo,...
. - Censorship cases in Germany reported by the International Freedom of Expression ExchangeInternational Freedom of Expression ExchangeThe International Freedom of Expression eXchange , founded in 1992, is a global network of around 90 non-governmental organisations that promotes and defends the right to freedom of expression....
- World Press Freedom Review by the International Press InstituteInternational Press InstituteInternational Press Institute is a global organisation dedicated to the promotion and protection of press freedom and the improvement of journalism practices. Founded in October 1950, the IPI has members in over 120 countries....
- 2008 U.S. State Department country report on human rights practices in Germany.
- 2008 U.S. State Department country report on religious freedom in Germany.
- Review of Germany by the United Nations Human Rights CouncilUnited Nations Human Rights CouncilThe United Nations Human Rights Council is an inter-governmental body within the United Nations System. The UNHRC is the successor to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights , and is a subsidiary body of the United Nations General Assembly...
's Universal Periodic Review, February 2, 2009