Anti-Terror laws

German Chancellor Angela Merkel expressed her support on Saturday for renewing Germany's anti-terror laws before they expire this January.

The laws provide authorities with broad powers to access and store personal information to build suspect profiles.

"We are going to need a large portion of the regulations in the future in order to prevent terrorist attacks in Germany," Merkel told the regional daily Passauer Neue Presse on Saturday.

Merkel's statement comes days after the US commando raid that killed al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in Pakistan.

Last April, German authorities arrested three alleged members of al Qaeda in the western cities of Düsseldorf and Bochum. The suspects had concrete plans for bomb attacks, according to authorities.

Data mining

Among the controversial security measures is a provision that allows authorities to secretly store personal data such as telecommunications and bank account activity.

Germany's constitutional court overturned the original measure in 2008, which allowed data to be saved for up to sixth months. Privacy advocates and civil rights groups criticized its scope, saying it would make massive amounts of personal data vulnerable to misuse.

Merkel, however, views data collection as a critical law enforcement tool.

"In light of the fight against terrorism and crime, we cannot forgo the instrument that allows us to store personal data, particularly due to the fact that we have to implement EU guidelines," Merkel said.

Coalition controversy

The debate over whether and for how long the anti-terrorism laws should be extended has created tension in Merkel's center-right coalition government.

Justice Minister Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger, a member of the Free Democrats, remains skeptical of the laws and has called for a review to investigate whether or not they conform with Germany's constitution.

"There is still this reflex to sharpen the laws whenever there is an opportunity to do so, even though this has nothing to do with the concrete threat level," said Schnarrenberger, going on to say that the government should consider getting rid of certain provisions in the law.

"When I see that many of the more aggressive powers have been barely used by the intelligence agencies over the past years, there's an argument to be made that they shouldn't be left in the current law," she said.

Broad support

However, Jörg Ziercke - the head of Germany's Federal Criminal Police (BKA) - countered Schnarrenberger's statement, expressing his support for the security measures, including data collection.

"Even if I only use a security measure once and stop an attack with it, then the measure is worthwhile," Ziercke said.

Ziercke's position finds broad support among the German people, according to new polling data released by the German public broadcaster ZDF.

When asked about the anti-terror laws, 79 percent of Germans said they supported them while 16 percent said they were opposed.

Germany's anti-terror laws - which are set to expire on January 12, 2012 – were passed after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks and first renewed in 2007.

Author: Spencer Kimball (Reuters, AFP, dapd)
Editor: Kyle James