Katharina Hammerschmidt

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Katharina Hammerschmidt (born December 14, 1943 in Danzig ; † June 29, 1975 in West Berlin ) was a member of the "first generation" of the Red Army Faction (RAF).

Life

RAF

In 1970 Hammerschmidt came to the RAF through her friend Gudrun Ensslin . She supported the group primarily by providing shelter and as a courier. A short time later she was wanted on a wanted list and fled to France . She was accused of "forwarding weapons for the terrorists and renting conspiratorial apartments under a false name". However, on the advice of her lawyer Otto Schily , she returned to Germany soon after and surrendered to justice on June 29, 1972 . Schily had expected that Hammerschmidt would be questioned, but then released. Already at the start of her detention she complained of health problems, after an unsuccessful examination “the patient was prescribed mainly sedatives and laxatives”.

death

While in custody, she developed cancer from which she died exactly three years after her arrest. Her lawyer and numerous sympathizers , but also independent medical professionals, accused the prison doctors of neglecting the necessary examinations and treatments and thereby bearing responsibility for Hammerschmidt's death.

As early as August 1973, during a routine examination by a prison doctor, x-rays were made showing growths . According to the time, "narrow shadows on the right and left" were found and overlooked by the doctor. After a deterioration in her health, Hammerschmidt went for a medical examination at the end of September 1973. She complained of a severe sore throat, hoarseness, and a swollen throat. After a blood sample and analysis, x-rays and care by two prison doctors, including an internist , it was found that everything was okay. Her health was declared when the hunger strike ended at the end of June 1973, as well as with shouts through the prison window. An uninvolved inmate commented on the state of health as follows: "There was no transition at all between her jaw and neck."

Outrage arose from the apparently poor health. At the beginning of October 1973, it was mainly non-political prisoners who took part in the "noise" within the institution in order to have a specialist investigate them. A trainee lawyer at Schily, who was a medical layman, justified the later rejected application for an examination with a suspicion of a tumor. A month later, the neck was swollen another three centimeters. The specialist called in quickly determined a suspected tumor and requested further investigation. At the end of November, Hammerschmidt suffered an attack of suffocation, after which she was admitted to a hospital; her health there was already very critical. Schily filed a complaint against the prison doctors for attempted murder. The complaint, signed by 131 medical professionals, stated that "this [missing the tumor] [...] cannot be explained by insufficient medical knowledge". The attending physician explained that "at that time the tumor, which was now the size of a child's head, might still have to be operated on". The charge was "dismissed".

In a process after her death that condemned the Berlin District Court the State of Berlin because of "culpable violation of the official duty" to pay 5,000  German marks to the relatives Hammerschmidt and gave the prison so the blame for her death.

Meaning after her death

The RAF-Kommando, which carried out an explosives attack against the JVA Weiterstadt on March 27, 1993 , gave itself the name “Kommando Katharina Hammerschmidt”. In the letter in which the RAF declared its own dissolution in March 1998, Katharina Hammerschmidt is mentioned by name as a victim of the "armed struggle" despite her comparatively insignificant role.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g h i Hans Schueler: Indictment against the prosecutor . In: Die Zeit , No. 39/1976
  2. ↑ a b c d e f Pieter Herman Bakker Schutt, Political Defense in Criminal Matters: A case study of the criminal proceedings against Andreas Baader, Gudrun Ensslin, Ulrike Meinhof, Holger Meins, Jan Carl Raspe in the Federal Republic of Germany from 1972 to 1977 . New Malik publishing house. Kiel 1986, p. 88 (PhD thesis, PDF ( Memento of the original from October 26, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. ) , in trade under Pieter Bakker Schut: 20 years Stammheim - the necessary correction of the prevailing opinion. Pahl-Rugenstein, Bonn 1997, ISBN 3-89144-247-5 [2. edit 2007 edition, ISBN 978-3-89144-247-0 ] @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / labourhistory.net
  3. ↑ Butz Perters: RAF terrorism in Germany , p 454
  4. ^ Declaration of dissolution of the RAF: http://www.extremismus.com/terror/rafdox30.html ( Memento of February 21, 2007 in the Internet Archive )
personal data
SURNAME Hammerschmidt, Katharina
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German member of the Red Army faction
DATE OF BIRTH December 14, 1943
PLACE OF BIRTH Danzig
DATE OF DEATH June 29, 1975
Place of death West Berlin