Rules request from the Office for the Protection of the Constitution: Hamburg screens its staff

In Hamburg, the controversial rule request to the Office for the Protection of the Constitution about applicants for public service has been in force since August 1st. As can be seen from the Senate's response to a request from the Left Party, inquiries were made about 4,049 people in the first month alone. In five cases there were so-called “hits”. The State Office for the Protection of the Constitution (LfV) therefore had “information about the person in question”.

The taz had already learned from teacher circles that there was said to have been a first “hit” with the education authority. However, their spokesman Peter Albrecht stonewalled and explained that his authority does not comment on individual cases in which the rule request leads to suspicion. According to the Senate response, three hits affected the education authority, one hit the finance authority, which is also responsible for the districts, and one hit the economic authority.

So far, in two of the five cases, so-called “authority certificates” from the State Office for the Protection of the Constitution (LfV) are available, in which the State Office for the Protection of the Constitution (LfV) presents its findings. Of these, the Senate now writes, “one case can be assigned to Islamism, one case to left-wing extremism.” In the three other cases, these certificates from the Office for the Protection of the Constitution are still “in progress”. So far, one person has been heard on the allegations. A decision is still pending, according to the Senate.

The request breaks down in detail the municipal institutions and areas in which the inspections took place. There is a clear focus on the education and science sector, which accounts for the majority of all inquiries. But numerous checks were also carried out by the security authorities, the judiciary, the district offices and various state companies.

It is striking that 60 percent of the inquiries concern the education sector, says the Left Party's domestic policy spokesman, Deniz Çelik: "The Senate has thus initiated a mass review process that goes far beyond particularly security-relevant areas." He reminds us that Hamburg's data protection officer warned against such unfounded and widespread involvement of the Office for the Protection of the Constitution. “These figures increase doubts as to whether such a far-reaching intervention is still proportionate,” said Çelik.

According to the Senate, the rule request “does not fundamentally change” the requirements for hiring. The process has started and is proceeding “according to plan”.

In advance it had been sharply criticized by the trade unions, among others. In Hamburg, the check not only affects civil servants, but also all employees and also student assistants. In addition, the request is not only made once when hiring, but also for other “personnel measures” such as promotions and transfers.

The school authority received the most reviews, with a total of 1,016 inquiries. She is also responsible for youth welfare. In the higher education sector, the University of Hamburg led the field with 625 inquiries (including student assistants), followed by the Hamburg University of Technology with 436 inquiries, the University of Applied Sciences with 182 inquiries and the Hafencity University with 137 inquiries.

There were also many checks in the security authorities and in the judiciary. The fire department received 224 inquiries, while the courts registered a total of 156 inquiries and the police registered 54 inquiries.

A total of 139 inquiries were carried out in the Hamburg district offices, with the Mitte district recording the most with 45 inquiries. In addition, there were 239 reviews at the state center for training and further education and a total of 20 queries at the state office for education.

According to the Left's request, this is now actually being implemented. Of the approximately 4,049 inquiries, 2,341 were made for employment in the public service, 677 for appointment as a probationary civil servant and 420 for appointment as a permanent civil servant.

However, 475 inquiries simply asked for an extension of an employment contract and 35 asked for a transfer to another department. 28 inquiries were about extending the employment contract, 13 were about its implementation and a further 17 were about taking on a trainee.