Zugangserschwerungsgesetz
Encyclopedia
The Zugangserschwerungsgesetz (Access Impediment Act, or ZugErschwG) was a German
law that aimed to make it difficult to access sites on the World Wide Web
with depictions of sexual activity by and against children (child pornography
). Prosecution solely because of accessing a blocked site or domain was not planned.
The move to introduce Internet blocking started in 2008; it was promoted by Ursula von der Leyen
, then minister for family affairs, who campaigned for German Internet service provider
s to introduce blocking through self-regulatory agreements with the government. Some ISPs signed such agreements, but before any measures could be implemented, the government decided that a stronger legal foundation was required. This led to the Bundestag
passing the Zugangserschwerungsgesetz on 18 June 2009. From the start, the project was the subject of intense political debate. It was considered ineffective, an introduction of censorship
, and many legal experts thought the act violated the German constitution.
The tide began to turn when federal elections in September 2009 led to a change in the government coalition. The Social Democrats
, which had supported the law, suffered heavy losses and were replaced by the Free Democrats
, who had achieved a record result and had spoken out against Internet blocking. The new coalition agreed that no further moves towards blocking would be made. In November 2009, German President
Horst Köhler
decided to ask the government for further information before he could sign the act, but ultimately he found no reasons to stop the act′s passage into law and gave his signature in February 2010. As the new government had already resolved not to implement Internet blocking, a "non application directive" was issued by the government, stipulating that only the take-down provisions in the Zugangserschwerungsgesetz should be implemented. In April 2010, the government finally decided to repeal the Zugangserschwerungsgesetz altogether. The revocation bill completed its passage through the Bundestag on 1 December 2011.
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...
law that aimed to make it difficult to access sites on the World Wide Web
World Wide Web
The World Wide Web is a system of interlinked hypertext documents accessed via the Internet...
with depictions of sexual activity by and against children (child pornography
Child pornography
Child pornography refers to images or films and, in some cases, writings depicting sexually explicit activities involving a child...
). Prosecution solely because of accessing a blocked site or domain was not planned.
The move to introduce Internet blocking started in 2008; it was promoted by Ursula von der Leyen
Ursula von der Leyen
Ursula Gertrud von der Leyen is a German politician of the conservative Christian Democratic Union.Since 30 November 2009, she has served as the Federal Minister of Labour and Social Affairs in the Second Cabinet Merkel. In the First Cabinet Merkel , she served as Federal Minister of Family...
, then minister for family affairs, who campaigned for German Internet service provider
Internet service provider
An Internet service provider is a company that provides access to the Internet. Access ISPs directly connect customers to the Internet using copper wires, wireless or fiber-optic connections. Hosting ISPs lease server space for smaller businesses and host other people servers...
s to introduce blocking through self-regulatory agreements with the government. Some ISPs signed such agreements, but before any measures could be implemented, the government decided that a stronger legal foundation was required. This led to the Bundestag
Bundestag
The Bundestag is a federal legislative body in Germany. In practice Germany is governed by a bicameral legislature, of which the Bundestag serves as the lower house and the Bundesrat the upper house. The Bundestag is established by the German Basic Law of 1949, as the successor to the earlier...
passing the Zugangserschwerungsgesetz on 18 June 2009. From the start, the project was the subject of intense political debate. It was considered ineffective, an introduction of censorship
Censorship
thumb|[[Book burning]] following the [[1973 Chilean coup d'état|1973 coup]] that installed the [[Military government of Chile |Pinochet regime]] in Chile...
, and many legal experts thought the act violated the German constitution.
The tide began to turn when federal elections in September 2009 led to a change in the government coalition. The Social Democrats
Social Democratic Party of Germany
The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...
, which had supported the law, suffered heavy losses and were replaced by the Free Democrats
Free Democratic Party (Germany)
The Free Democratic Party , abbreviated to FDP, is a centre-right classical liberal political party in Germany. It is led by Philipp Rösler and currently serves as the junior coalition partner to the Union in the German federal government...
, who had achieved a record result and had spoken out against Internet blocking. The new coalition agreed that no further moves towards blocking would be made. In November 2009, German President
President of Germany
The President of the Federal Republic of Germany is the country's head of state. His official title in German is Bundespräsident . Germany has a parliamentary system of government and so the position of President is largely ceremonial...
Horst Köhler
Horst Köhler
Horst Köhler is a German politician of the Christian Democratic Union. He was President of Germany from 2004 to 2010. As the candidate of the two Christian Democratic sister parties, the CDU and the CSU, and the liberal FDP, Köhler was elected to his first five-year term by the Federal Assembly on...
decided to ask the government for further information before he could sign the act, but ultimately he found no reasons to stop the act′s passage into law and gave his signature in February 2010. As the new government had already resolved not to implement Internet blocking, a "non application directive" was issued by the government, stipulating that only the take-down provisions in the Zugangserschwerungsgesetz should be implemented. In April 2010, the government finally decided to repeal the Zugangserschwerungsgesetz altogether. The revocation bill completed its passage through the Bundestag on 1 December 2011.