Germany's new Left MPs accused of collaborating with Stasi

[T_i_B]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/germany/article/0,2763,1577408,00.html

Germany's new Left party, which could play a crucial role in deciding the next chancellor, faced acute embarrassment yesterday amid claims that at least seven of its MPs had collaborated with the Stasi, the East German secret police.

The head of Germany's state-held Stasi archive, Marianne Birthler, said she had documents to prove the MPs had worked as "inoffizielle mitarbeiter" (unofficial collaborators). The public had a right to know which MPs had collaborated, she said, adding: "It's a question of trust."

The revelation came as the Left party held its first meeting as a parliamentary group after Sunday's inconclusive general election. It is made up of members from the Party of Democratic Socialism, the successor to East Germany's Communist party, and a new west German leftwing alliance, the Workers and Social Justice party. It won 8.7% of the vote, coming second in eastern Germany.

With neither Gerhard Schröder's Social Democrats nor Angela Merkel's conservatives able to form a government on their own, the Left party's MPs could play a crucial role in a secret ballot for chancellor. Some have already hinted they might back Mr Schröder.

[neweurope]

1. Birthler has already retreated on this. Now she's saying there

were "some" among the "candidates". It was the usual way of dealing with the left: sling dirt and hope some of it will stick.

Which does not mean that I totally disbelieve that there were some. If you're going to have an investigation check ALL parties, though, it's not as if the other parties don't have members from the east.

I do think however that there shouldn't be any investigation at all any more. There have been enough. It's time to move on. They're trying to use the past of these people to smash them - much, MUCH more than they ever did with the nazis.

---------------------

Remember Fallujah

Bush to The Hague!

[Minstrel Boy]

2. very true

"much, MUCH more than they ever did with the nazis"

I'm very happy to see the Left Party did this well first time out.

[Kellanved]

4. first time out?

The "left party" is identical to the PDS, which in turn is identical to the SED. It was by no means a first time. (Nor is it really a left party, but that's another matter entirely)

As to the accusations: Many well-known PDS politicians were active in the SED, most were GDR patriots. It is not very far fetched to assume that at least some of them had Stasi contacts or helped the Stasi out of their sense of patriotic duty.
Nonetheless, Stasi victims are afraid of the PDS/left, it is not some harmless party without a past.

There is another side to it, however: it is sound to assume that the other parties have former stasi-people in their ranks as well; the eastern CDU was part of the GDR party system and considering the sheer number of stasi personnel it is almost certain that a few joined western parties.

The real problem is the hypocrisy: At least one of the western parties was founded by Nazis. Another one had no problems with prominent ("former") Nazis in important government positions and neither of the big parties had fundamental problems with allowing the ("former") Nazi Kiesinger to become chancellor.
To make it short: the Federal Republic was a lot more forgiving to Nazis than it was to Communists. Until Schröder became chancellor, the Federal Government prosecuted Wehrmacht deserters and enforced Nazi verdicts (for instance against gays) - at the same time it diligently published obituaries for former nazi officials and welcomed east German deserters.

[reorg]

6. very true

the very torches of freedom that had formerly been members of the Nazi party and/or served as members of the SS in high ranks of Nazi government institutions, as Nazi loyalist judges, in conformist universities and media, were the ones who put the label "emigrant" dismissively on Brandt and Wehner, insinuating they were unpatriotic when they entered into negotiations and contracts with the former GDR.

You are certainly well acquainted with the history of Herbert Wehner. Having been a leading member of the Communist Party before and during WWII, he was continuously lambasted throughout his career of some 40 years at the top of the SPD. His right-wing opponents never failed to mention his past at every opportunity they got, and accused him to be a Commie right until the end, even though he actually was a stolid "realist", and conservative to boot, rather than a wild-eyed revolutionary, and even though he had experienced the horrors of Stalinism personally and from up close. This was actually much worse than the little snipes with the "Stasi" allegations, I believe - with no "communism" in sight anywhere near, the latter will wear off pretty quickly now.

[bobbieinok]

11. opponents attacked WBrandt (60s-70s SPD leader) for being a traitor

b/c he spent WWII in Sweden(?).......of course, if he'd stayed in Germany he'd have been thrown in a concentration camp

but logic means nothing to the right

[1932]

3. Many on the right probably cooperated with CIA and N.E.D.

[reorg]

7. still do n/t

[reorg]

5. same old shit

with its reports on the German election, "The Guardian" shows once again what has become of a once decent newspaper: a tendencious rag with crappy reporting. While Timothy Garton Ash is wailing that the election outcome is not what was hoped for in London and Warsaw ... let's take a look at this article.

First: these allegations are not at all new. They are embarrassing only for those who would bring them up time and time again to spread innuendo and slander.

Second: "collaborated with the Stasi" - what exactly does that mean? I suspect that outside of Germany, hardly anyone knows, when even in Germany many are confused about it.

An "IM" (unofficial collaborator/member of staff) of the "Stasi" (Ministry of the Interior) normally would enter into a written contract with the Ministry and would receive regular remuneration for his or her services. This is not, however, what the "documents" of Ms. Birthler show.

If, say, Mr. Bisky wrote a report 20 years ago on a conference in the West that he participated in, and such a report would end up somehow, somewhere in the files of the Interior Ministry of the former GDR, then this is now publicly cited as proof of "collaboration". Even if Mr. Bisky consistently claims that he never was an IM, and nobody is able to prove otherwise.

If Mr. Gysi had talks with Stasi officers in his capacity as the attorney of the most notable opponents of the GDR, Havemann and Bahro, in the early eighties - which he was supposed to have - this is brought up again and again and again in order to discredit him, somehow. Why? What did he actually do wrong? Nobody actually knows, but he had "contacts", and this is apparently a bad thing in itself. Gysi has, of course, also consistently denied that he was an "unofficial collaborator/member of staff". What's more, a court of law has ruled in his favor and forbidden to make such claims. This certainly does not stop certain interested parties to continue with the gossip.

The funny thing is: there has been a number of proven (not former, but active) cases of Stasi spies right at the top of ALL Eastern parties, before and during they consorted and merged with their Western counterparts. So how about a thorough investigation and publication of all references to ALL active politicians from East and West in the Stasi files? ? Ain't going to happen, since it would leave little to insinuate and blame the Leftists for.

[1932]

8. If you're interested in British media criticism of german left

check out the 17 September Today programme on BBC4. You can get it at iTunes.

It was like a commerical for Merkle. They hit home the taglines: "Merkle" is german for growth and "Schroeder" translates to stagnation. Also, everyone was looking forward to Merkle winning.

One thing that was so annoying (IIRC) was the presumtion that social spending is bad for growth. They should call up Amratya Sen in Cambridge and let him rebut this presumtpion.

Perhaps the desperation was a reflection of how tight the polls were.

[Kellanved]

9. It is funny

Considering that the main reason for the SPD's trouble in the past elections was the reform agenda 2010.
Merkel, with her Kohl cabinet past, should stand for stagnation - not Schröder. Anyway, 90% of the German voters voted for parties advocating reforms and - to a varying degree - cuts in the social net. (the fact that the current system can't continue much longer is pretty much undeniable.) The claim of stagnation is laughable.

I think they are buying the German media's "She's Maggie II" hype - but neither is Merkel an "Iron Lady", nor should Thatcher ruinous record be considered worth repeating.

[Karenina]

13. 22.9.2002 - Oldie but goodie

[Hav]

14. rofl thx

That's a great pic. I just have to borrow it.

[bobbieinok]

10. didn't everyone in East Germany cooperate with Stasi?? 'tell us what

we want to know about your colleagues/friends/neighbors/family or end in jail'

[MisterP]

12. they hired maybe a third of East Germans