page_title: Land Brandenburg Commissioner for the Study of the Repercussions of the Communist Dictatorship
section_title: Political situation after the 2009 state elections
hierarchical_section_title: Land Brandenburg Commissioner for the Study of the Repercussions of the Communist Dictatorship / Background / Political situation after the 2009 state elections
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: Die erste Beauftragte des Landes Brandenburg zur Aufarbeitung der Folgen der kommunistischen Diktatur, Ulrike Poppe
context_page_description: The Commissioner of the Land of Brandenburg for the Study of the Repercussions of the Communist Dictatorship is responsible for advising residents of Brandenburg who were directly persecuted or indirectly affected by the communist rule during the period of Soviet occupation from 1945-49 and during the existence of the German Democratic Republic from 1949-1989. The agency is formally known as "die Beauftragte des Landes Brandenburg zur Aufarbeitung der Folgen der kommunistischen Diktatur“ and usually referred to as „Die Landesbeauftragte für Aufarbeitung“ or „Die Aufarbeitungsbeauftragte“.
context_section_description: The state elections of autumn 2009 led to the formation of a governing coalition by the Social Democrats and the Left Party ("Die Linke"). In the aftermath, concerns were raised that the discussion (“Aufarbeitung”) of the Socialist Unity Party (SED) dictatorship and its consequences would receive even less attention. Indeed, the subject had been strongly neglected in Brandenburg ever since the Peaceful Revolution, as the long-lived governments under Manfred Stolpe (SPD) had chosen to pursue a policy of indulgence towards former GDR and MfS (“Stasi”) officials. Despite attempts at appeasement - for instance, by outlining their historical policy in the coalition contract - the new government was threatening to lose even more of its credibility as a determined agent of “Aufarbeitung” when the media exposed the MfS implications of several Left Party deputies. Consequently, it was crucial for the state parliament to prove its willingness to come to terms with the past, which was eventually achieved through the nomination of a candidate as Brandenburg commissioner, the general submission of all MPs to an MfS check-up, and the establishment of a commission to assess Brandenburg’s socialist history and its transition to democracy.
caption: The first commissioner, Ulrike Poppe (since 2010).
exif: {"Image Make": "Canon", "Image Model": "Canon EOS 1000D", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "72", "Image YResolution": "72", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "Adobe Photoshop CS2 Windows", "Image DateTime": "2012:04:04 00:36:40", "Image ExifOffset": "208", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "698", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "5208", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/80", "EXIF FNumber": "28/5", "EXIF ExposureProgram": "Portrait Mode", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "400", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0221", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2012:04:03 13:24:16", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2012:04:03 13:24:16", "EXIF ApertureValue": "5", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Pattern", "EXIF Flash": "Flash fired, compulsory flash mode", "EXIF FocalLength": "55", "EXIF SubSecTime": "35", "EXIF SubSecTimeOriginal": "35", "EXIF SubSecTimeDigitized": "35", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "2445", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "3092", "EXIF FocalPlaneXResolution": "261863/59", "EXIF FocalPlaneYResolution": "288988/65", "EXIF FocalPlaneResolutionUnit": "2", "EXIF CustomRendered": "Normal", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard"}