Stasi
The Stasi was the official state security service of East Germany, the German Democratic Republic in short the GDR. The Stasi motto was "Schild und Schwert der Partei" (Shield and Sword of the Party). "The Party" was the ruling Socialist Unity Party of Germany. The main job of the Stasi was to prevent opposition to the Party.
| Ministry for State Security | |
|---|---|
| Ministerium für Staatssicherheit (MfS) | |
| |
| Seal of the Ministry of State Security of the GDR | |
| Agency overview | |
| Formed | 8 February 1950 |
| Dissolved | 13 January 1990[1] |
| Headquarters | East Berlin, GDR |
| Employees | 91,015 (1989)[2] |
| Agency executives | Wilhelm Zaisser (1950–1953) Ernst Wollweber (1953–1957) Erich Mielke (1957–1989) Wolfgang Schwanitz (1989–1990) |
It was one of the most effective and ruthless secret police agencies in the world.[3][4][5][6][7][8] The Stasi headquarter was in East Berlin, with a group of buildings in Lichtenberg and several other buildings in Berlin.
One of its main tasks was spying on the people, through a vast network of citizens who were informants ("snitches"). Informants were paid, or given favours for this.
The Stasi also worked as an intelligence agency abroad, using espionage and covert operations in foreign countries. Under its long-time head Markus Wolf it got a reputation as one of the most effective intelligence agencies of the Cold War. After German reunification in 1990, many Stasi officials were prosecuted for their crimes. The files that the Stasi had kept on millions of East Germans were laid open. Now citizens can see their personal files on request; these files are kept by the Federal Commissioner for the Stasi Archives.
Stasi Media
Das erste Wappen des Ministeriums für Staatssicherheit der DDR.
Citizens protesting and entering the Stasi building in Berlin; the sign accuses the Stasi and SED of being Nazi-like dictators (1990).
Part of the former Stasi compound in Berlin, with "Haus 1" in the centre
The former Stasi Prison, Erfurt
Cells in Bautzner Strasse Memorial, Dresden
Entrance to the "Runde Ecke" museum, Leipzig, 2009
Façade of the Memorial Site, Lindenstrasse, Potsdam
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References
- ↑ Vilasi, Antonella Colonna (9 March 2015). The History of the Stasi. AuthorHouse. ISBN 9781504937054 – via Google Books.
- ↑ Murphy, Cullen (17 January 2012). God's Jury: The Inquisition and the Making of the Modern World. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. ISBN 978-0-618-09156-0. Retrieved 3 January 2014.
- ↑ Chambers, Madeline No remorse from Stasi as Berlin marks fall of Wall Archived 2015-10-16 at the Wayback Machine, Reuters, 4 Nov 2009.
- ↑ Angela Merkel 'turned down' job from Stasi, The Daily Telegraph, 14 November 2012.
- ↑ Connolly, Kate,'Puzzlers' reassemble shredded Stasi files, bit by bit, The Los Angeles Times, 1 November 2009.
- ↑ Calio, Jim, The Stasi prison ghosts, The Huffington Post, 18 November 2009.
- ↑ Rosenberg, Steve, Computers to solve Stasi puzzle, BBC, 25 May 2007.
- ↑ New study finds more Stasi spooks, Der Spiegel, 11 March 2008.