Ministry of Justice (GDR)

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The Ministry of Justice of the German Democratic Republic was founded in the GDR in 1949 and dissolved with German reunification in 1990. Its tasks were then taken over by the Federal Ministry of Justice and the justice ministries of the federal states . The Justice Minister , represented by a State Secretary, headed the GDR Ministry of Justice . The minister issued orders and implementing provisions to supplement the laws .

history

After the Second World War and the collapse of National Socialism in May 1945, the victorious powers determined the legal process in Germany in the four zones of occupation. In East Germany this was the Soviet military administration SMAD. With the SMAD order No. 17 on July 17, 1945, it ordered the establishment of a judicial system in the Soviet occupation zone and thus brought the German Central Administration for Justice DJV into being. When the GDR was founded in October 1949, the DJV was absorbed by the GDR's Ministry of Justice. Many people were taken on, including the last president of the DJV, Max Fechner ( SED ).

Max Fechner was the first Justice Minister in the GDR. The DC circuit of Justice was already well advanced at that time. The judicial independence (provided for in the constitution of the GDR ) was not guaranteed and the judiciary was brought onto the party line through the use of people's judges . The previous justice ministries of the federal states were downgraded to main departments in 1953 and their tasks were largely transferred to the new GDR ministry. Because he had spoken out in an interview with the New Germany on June 30, 1953 against prosecuting the striking workers of June 17, Fechner was dismissed as an enemy of the state and the party , expelled from the SED, arrested and served for eight years Penitentiary sentenced. His successor was on July 17, 1953 Hilde Benjamin (SED), who headed the ministry from 1953 to 1967. In political criminal proceedings, the courts were given the judgments by the Ministry.

By the administration of justice decree of April 4, 1963, the Ministry of Justice was deprived of responsibility for the direction and control of the courts and transferred to the Supreme Court , which reported to the State Council . This weakened the Ministry of Justice. Hilde Benjamin resigned as Minister in 1967. His successor as Justice Minister of the GDR was politicians from the LDPD bloc party . First Kurt Wünsche (1967–1972) and then Hans-Joachim Heusinger (1972–1990).

After the fall of the Berlin Wall , Kurt Wünsche was again Minister of Justice in 1990 and organized the handover of the tasks of the Ministry of Justice to the newly created states and the implementation of the Unification Treaty .

Minister 1949–1990

Surname Term of office Council of Ministers Political party
Max Fechner October 11, 1949 - July 15, 1953 Provisional government
1950–1954
SED
Hilde Benjamin July 15, 1953 - July 14, 1967 1954-1958
1958-1963
1963-1967
SED
Kurt wishes July 14, 1967 - October 16, 1972 1967-1971
1971-1976
LDPD
Hans-Joachim Heusinger October 16, 1972 - January 12, 1990 1971-1976
1976-1981
1981-1986
1986-1989
Modrow
LDPD
Kurt wishes January 12, 1990 - August 16, 1990 Modrow
de Maizière
LDPD →
BFD → non-party
Manfred Walther (managing director) August 16, 1990 - October 2, 1990 de Maizière CDU

State Secretaries and Deputies to the Minister

Dorotheenstrasse 93, then Ministry of Justice (Photo: 2010)
  • Helmut Brandt (CDU), State Secretary from October 12, 1949 to September 6, 1950
  • Heinrich Toeplitz (CDU), November 15, 1950 to April 1960 State Secretary
  • Hans Ranke (SED) Deputy Minister from July 1957 to 1965, State Secretary from 1965 to November 30, 1989
  • Rolf Kaulfersch ( NDPD ), Deputy Minister from 1960 to 1970
  • Hans Breitbarth (NDPD), Deputy Minister from 1970 to 1990, responsible for organization and administration
  • Stephan Supranowitz (SED), Deputy Minister from 1972 to 1982, responsible for legislation and the Economic Council
  • Herbert Kern (SED), State Secretary from 1974 to 1987, responsible for management issues and courts
  • Siegfried Wittenbeck (SED), Deputy Minister from 1982 to 1987, State Secretary from 1987 to 1990
  • Wolfgang Peller (SED), Deputy Minister from October 1987 to 1990, State Secretary from January 4, 1990 to April 1990
  • Günter Kalwert (SED), Deputy Minister from 1988 to 1990, Head of the Military Courts Department (from 1962)
  • Ulrich Roehl (SED), November 30, 1989 to January 4, 1990 State Secretary
  • Karin Schüler (SED), January 4 to April 1990, Deputy Minister
  • Reinhard Nissel (LDP), State Secretary from May 2 to October 2, 1990
  • Manfred Walther (CDU), May 30 to October 2, 1990 State Secretary
  • Rolf Schwanitz (SPD), July 23 to August 20, 1990 Parliamentary State Secretary

Seat

The Ministry of Justice had its seat at Dorotheenstrasse 93 in Berlin. The administration building from the 1930s was previously used by the Reich Ministry of the Interior .

Publications

The Ministry of Justice was the publisher of the journal Neue Justiz .

See also

Web links