Germany is currently constructing a “huge surveillance apparatus” reminiscent of that created by the Nazis and the East German Stasi, according to one of the nation’s leading historians, Hubertus Knabe.
Knabe, an outspoken Communist critic but also a Green Party member, explained the nation’s new “whistleblower protection law” which came into force on July 2 this year actually promotes employees reporting co-workers involved in “illegal activities” while prohibiting any form of retaliation against the so-called whistleblowers. The law requires all companies with more than 49 employees to establish an office dealing with these anonymous reports.
“The tip-off points won’t only pursue suspicions of criminality, they will also deal with misdemeanours subject to fines,” Knabe wrote in an article for Die Welt. “They will even be responsible for statements by officials that ‘constitute a violation of the obligation of loyalty to the constitution’.”
He insists that the lack of transparency will result in people reporting on colleagues or their bosses for personal gain or revenge, leading to “an atmosphere of fear similar to those seen in dictatorships” such as those under the Nazis and the Soviets.
The country’s political mainstream is becoming increasingly authoritarian as it considers whether to ban the populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) party after it has surged to over 20 percent in the national polls.
