From Hildburg Bruns
Berlin’s politicians were last checked for their GDR past in 2017. Nothing is happening in the new Parliament! A bill should now enforce it.
No more Stasi checks on Berlin MPs? This drives Tom Sello (64) crazy: “I think that’s the wrong signal,” complains the officer responsible for dealing with the SED dictatorship. The Berlin CDU is now putting pressure on and wants to enforce the review.
The check by Berlin MPs has been common since reunification. The review was most recently launched in the last electoral term in 2017. The finding came after viewing the documents for 160 parliamentarians at the end of 2018.
The result: a member of parliament was reprimanded by the honorary council because he had refused the Stasi check. The review was always voluntary and only affected politicians who were at least 18 years old shortly after the fall of the Wall. There was no proof of full-time or unofficial activity for the state security for any of those examined.
After the election of the new parliament with 147 MPs last fall – radio silence. After the criticism of the commissioner Sello, the CDU now wants to act and introduce a corresponding draft law.
“The idea that there are MPs in an elected parliament who have actively worked for the repressive apparatus is unbearable,” said parliamentary group leader Kai Wegner (49). “There must be no final line in the processing.”
For Commissioner Sello it is also a question of the same standards. “Because the victims of political persecution in the GDR who have been rehabilitated are checked for a Stasi past. Only then do they receive social compensation payments.”
If an honorary council chaired by Parliament President Dennis Buchner (45, SPD) detects a crime or a violation of the principles of humanity in serious cases, the person concerned would be asked to give up their seat in parliament.
