German Chancellor Angela Merkel got the grand tour of the former East Germany’s secret police, the Stasi, Archives today. What files
may reside there of interest to genealogists I do not know, but I guarantee that there must be a lot of them. Following is a teaser from an article published in the January 15, 2009 edition of the Earth Times.
“It has been shown that the opening of the Stasi files has contributed to reconciliation, and not division” the chancellor said during her first visit to the former Stasi-headquarters, situated in east Berlin’s Lichtenberg area.
Merkel, of east German origin, was shown around by the head of the documentation centre, Marianne Birthler. Birthler has campaigned for funding to allow the work of the centre to continue for a further 10 years….
People can find out through the agency whether they were being monitored by the former East German authorities, and gain access to any existing files.
The archive holds more than 43 kilometres of Stasi files and millions of record cards. Last year around 87,000 requests were made to view records.
After reunification in October 1990 the records were also used to find out whether civil service job applicants had previously worked as informants in East Germany.
During Thursday’s visit, the chancellor spoke in favour of continuing the work being carried out at the centre. She recognised the particular importance of this work in 2009, the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.
I am related to Ms. Merkel and have been unable to find any of our relatives from @ 1600 AD back. Is there any way I can come into contact with her genealogy, that I might get mine from hers?