From Surveyor to Servant: The Democratisation of the Police (With Reference to the Brandenburg Police, Germany)

Introduction - The Police's Role in German Society

In researching and writing this project I have learnt a great deal about an important and unfortunately often misunderstood or underestimated part of German society, or indeed any society: the police. During research, a wide ranging spectrum of opinion was encountered on the subject of the police and their competence in Potsdam, in the Land Brandenburg, in the other new Bundesländer, as well as in the whole of Germany. Some criticism was blatantly biased. either for or against the police and some seemed to be justified by the information gathered during research. The major problem experienced was trying to separate the useful information and justified opinions from the not so useful or justified. I hope that I have been successful in this and that consequently the research carried out is of some interest and use to the reader.

The aim of the project is to gain an insight into the operation and problems of the police in Potsdam and in the Land Brandenburg, with references to the other Länder in Germany, especially the other four new Länder. It is difficult to talk strictly about the operation of the police in the town of Potsdam alone, since anything concerning the police in Germany, as a rule usually encompasses a whole Land and not just one town and consequently, most police matters which concern Brandenburg concern Potsdam. Therefore, much of the project deals with the Land Brandenburg and maybe seemingly less with Potsdam, although I shall try to narrow details as much as possible to Potsdam, or at least to a local level in chapters two and three. It should however be borne in mind, that when discussing Brandenburg, the Land and not the town is meant, unless otherwise specifically stated. Any important differences between general practice and that in Potsdam shall be dealt with, should they arise. Furthermore, any references to east or west Germany (with the 'e' of 'east' and the 'w' of 'west' in lower case letters) are not concerned with the two former German states, but are purely synonyms for eastern and western Germany respectively.

Each Land in Germany is responsible for its own police force according to the Grundgesetz articles 30 and 70. which concern the division of competence between the Bund and the Länder and the division of law-making competence between the Bundand the Länderrespectively.

A great deal of detail for this project has been obtained from articles in the press or from actual laws. Due to the huge amount of change in police operation in the last three or four years, finding books concerning the subject is at present extremely difficult. There is still much change taking place, four years after the Wende, or the 'Peaceful Revolution’ of 1989. Many things still need to settle into place after the great overhaul and sudden change in ideology and loyalty. Libraries in Potsdam and Berlin have been an important source of information, but personal contact through letters and interviews has also played a great role in the preparation of this project and indeed, simply talking with people who lived everyday lives in Potsdam before the Wende and who have lived through all the change have offered some interesting personal opinions. It is also interesting to hear some 'radical' points of view on the subject: some of these are not always unfounded. Overall, I have tried to present as much a balanced argument as is possible, supporting the wide range of opinion with specific examples, where they are available.

By way of an introduction, it is worth giving an outline of the basic concepts of the German police today. The police has as its responsibility the protection of public safety and order, the protection of individual rights. the aiding of other authorities at their request and the pursuit of criminals and law-breakers. It has the power of taking the necessary measures to hinder a danger to public safety or order. This may entail measures to establish the identity of a suspect, the cordoning off of an area to the public, the taking of someone into custody and the right of search and confiscation. Naturally, this has meant a great number of changes in the new Länder from the old GDR police system, which supported the SED's dictatorship.

With regard to the structure of the project, the first chapter will consider the general process of change after the Wende with reference to the old police of the GDR. In the second chapter, the new structures of the police in Brandenburg and Potsdam will be examined and problems for individual policemen and policewomen will be discussed. The final chapter, chapter three, will concern current issues, problems and successes of the Brandenburg and Potsdam police.

Hopefully, the reader will share my interest in a subject which is of great importance. My intention is to shed some light on the area of state power which affects everybody to a lesser or greater extent. I hope I shall succeed in doing this.

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