East German Round Table

“ The People's Chamber shall be the supreme organ of the formation of the will of the State. It shall have the task of legislating, controlling the government and administration, adopting the state budget, electing the Prime Minister, confirming the government program, and ratifying international treaties. It shall perform all the functions and exercise all the powers of the Federation, unless they are expressly reserved by this Constitution to other organs. (2) The opposition is a necessary component of parliamentary democracy. ”

“ State-supported universities shall cultivate the sciences in research, teaching and training. They shall be corporations under public law and shall have the right of self-government in all academic matters within the limits of the law. ”

“ The right of members to the unimpeded exercise of freedom of opinion and assembly, to freedom of group formation and to equal participation in the decision-making process within trade unions shall be guaranteed. (4) Trade unions shall have the right to conclude collective agreements on all matters affecting the working and living conditions of working people. The parties to collective agreements shall be trade unions and their umbrella organizations, enterprises of all forms of ownership and associations of enterprises, the Federation, the Länder and the institutions of local autonomy. ”

“ Article 17 Everyone has the right to form associations, to join them and to be active in them in accordance with the purposes of the association.
Article 18 (1) Everyone has the right to profess a religion or belief and to manifest it publicly or privately, alone or with others. The need for worship and pastoral care in public institutions shall be met. There shall be no coercion of the freedom to choose or practice a religion or belief. (2) The legal guardians shall be free to ensure the religious and ideological education of their children in accordance with their convictions. ”

“ It shall promote the right of individuals to use their labor to lead a life of dignity. In its economic policy, it shall, as a rule, give priority to the goal of full employment. In the event of unemployment or the threat of unemployment, every citizen has the right to publicly financed measures to promote employment. In this context, further vocational training or retraining shall be given priority over unemployment benefits and unemployment assistance. ”

“ Legal restrictions for the protection of youth and honor shall be permissible. War propaganda as well as the public manifestation of discrimination injurious to human dignity shall be prohibited by law. ”

“ If a motion by the Prime Minister to express confidence in him does not meet with the approval of the majority of the members of the People's Chamber, the President of the Republic must dissolve the People's Chamber on the 21st day after the vote, if it does not elect a Prime Minister by a majority of its members in the meantime. ”

“ If conscience conflicts with civic or civil duties, the citizen, if he does not wish to fulfill these duties, must offer other services and the state must open up other, equally burdensome duties. Article 12 (1) Everyone shall have the right to liberty and security of person; restrictions of liberty may be made only to the extent provided by law and unavoidable. ”

“ The right of trade unions to strike shall be guaranteed. In the event of labor disputes, compensation for damages, but not the threat and levying of penalty payments to enforce judicial decisions, shall be excluded. Wage compensation for production losses indirectly caused by labor disputes is a common burden of social autonomy and shall be reimbursed to the enterprises in accordance with statutory regulations. ”

“ Everyone whose rights and interests are affected by the public planning of projects, in particular of transport routes and facilities, energy facilities, production plants and large-scale constructions, shall have the right to participate in the procedure. The same right shall apply to associations of affected persons. (5) Everyone shall have the right, individually and in association with others, to address any government agency with suggestions, criticisms and complaints. There shall be a right to be heard and to receive a reasoned decision within a reasonable period of time. ”

“ The use of land shall be permitted only within the framework of land use planning. The ownership and use of agricultural and forestry land exceeding one hundred hectares shall be reserved for cooperative and public institutions and churches. The sale of land and the granting of rights of use to foreigners shall be subject to approval. (2) If the value of land increases due to its conversion into building land by planning, the holders of municipal autonomy shall be entitled to compensation for the increase in value. ”

“ Parties which systematically and persistently attack human dignity in their programmatic activities or which in this way violate the principles of an open and non-violent political will-forming process through their activities may, if dangers to the political will-forming process cannot otherwise be averted, be excluded from an election or banned. Decisions shall be reserved for the Constitutional Court; their effect shall be limited in time. No discrimination against the party or its members shall be permitted prior to a decision by the Constitutional Court. ”

“ Everyone owes everyone recognition as an equal. No one shall be discriminated against on the grounds of race, descent, nationality, language, sex, sexual orientation, social status, age, disability, religious, philosophical or political conviction. Article 2 All people are equal before the public authorities. ”

“ Persons deprived of their liberty must be brought before a judge without delay, but within 24 hours at the latest. The judge shall decide on the deprivation of liberty permitted by law in a reasoned written form or order release. The person concerned may request a judicial review of the continuation of the deprivation of liberty at reasonable intervals. A person trusted by the person concerned, and in the case of juveniles also the legal guardian, shall be notified of a deprivation of liberty and prior to any judicial decision on its order or continuation. ”

“ Women and men shall have equal rights. (2) The State shall be obliged to work towards the equality of women in employment and public life, in education and training, in the family and in the field of social security. ”

“ Any person whose freedom has been unlawfully restricted shall be entitled to compensation. Article 13 (1) No one shall be deprived of his lawful judge. Everyone shall be entitled to a fair, speedy and public trial. The public may be excluded by court order only in accordance with the law. ”

“ Article 28 Every working person employed in a business or enterprise shall have the right to participate in decision-making through representative bodies in the economic, social and personnel affairs of the business and also of the enterprise if the latter is of particular importance for the community due to the number of its employees, its market position or other characteristics. ”

“ State environmental policy shall take precautions against the occurrence of harmful effects on the environment and shall work towards the economical use and reuse of non-renewable raw materials and the economical use of energy. (2) Severe impairment or endangerment of the natural environment may be permitted only to the extent that this is indispensable for the protection of paramount public interests. ”

“ Freedom of the press, broadcasting and other mass media shall be guaranteed. The law shall ensure by procedural regulations that the diversity of opinions existing in society may be expressed in the press, radio and television. ”

“ Ownership of apartments, residential land plots and land plots used for recreational purposes held in trust shall pass to the entities of municipal autonomy in whose territory they are located. The provisions of the third and fourth sentences of paragraph 2 shall apply to personal users. Ownership of immovable cooperative property held in trust shall pass to the cooperative using it. Ownership of immovable business assets held in trust shall pass to the trustee. It shall be transferred to the using enterprises as soon as they assume the legal form of an independent enterprise. ”

“ Criminal laws shall not have retroactive effect. Everyone shall be deemed not guilty until convicted by final judgment. (3) No one may be held criminally responsible for the same act more than once. Everyone convicted shall have a legal right to have the sentence pronounced against him reviewed by a higher court. (4) In the procedure of criminal prosecution, everyone shall have a legal right to the following guarantees, about which he shall be instructed in an appropriate manner: 1) He shall be promptly informed, in a language he understands, of the charges against him. ”

“ Those who cause environmental damage shall be liable and responsible for compensatory measures. (5) The State and the holders of local autonomy shall be obliged to keep the accesses to mountains, forests, fields, lakes and rivers free for the general public and, if necessary, to make them free through restrictions on the right of ownership. ”

“ The State and the holders of municipal autonomy shall be entitled to participate in economic life for the performance of their duties. (3) For reasons of reliable and comprehensive supply of goods and services to the population, as well as for important regulatory reasons, public sector monopolies may be created by or on the basis of a law. ”