An affront to the constitution

What else will come out? How deep do the troublesome roots run? These questions still need to be posed almost three years after the far-right extremist National Socialist Underground (NSU) became known to the general public. The terror group is accused of 10 race-related murders and numerous bombings and bank robberies. The alleged offenders disappeared in 1998, even though the Thuringia branch of the Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV, Germany's domestic intelligence agency) kept them under surveillance at the time.

The series of murders began two years later and only ended in 2007. Now the public has learned that the BfV received a CD marked NSU/NSDAP (the abbreviation for Hitler's Nazi Party) all the way back in 2005.

According to the Cologne-based BfV, the CD was recently discovered "while looking through files for ongoing preliminary proceedings." If this is true, it's another reason to be concerned as it would mean that the office responsible for protecting the German constitution is not able to filter its own material in this digital age.

How else could it be explained that undiscovered information is collecting dust in the archives of a highly technical intelligence agency, when it should become visible with a simple keyword search?

No more embarrassing excuses

Did anyone at the Office for the Protection of the Constitution think it might possibly be a good idea to search their own files for "NSU"? No more excuses, please. They are sometimes embarrassing, sometimes ridiculous, but mostly: implausible! Here's a sad reminder: a few days after the NSU revealed itself in November 2011, files relating to the terror group were destroyed. In light of scandal after scandal, who is still willing to believe in coincidence or incompetence?

Heinz Fromm, then president of the BfV, stepped down. Shocked by the NSU, Germany's federal interior minister and his colleagues from Germany's 16 states vowed to push through extensive reforms in the intelligence agency. But they have hardly more to show for it than a central database for informers who are part of their respective scenes and report back to the BfV.

In the past, handling rightwing extremist and other informers was the dominion of each state's authorities. This practice was based on vanity and jealousy and facilitated the murderous actions of the rightwing extremists. The parliamentary inquiry committees in Berlin and Frankfurt concluded as much.

Which secrets did "Corelli" take to his grave?

The same accusation was recently made by a lawyer for the victims' relatives in the Munich-based NSU trial, which has been going on since May 2013. The timing for his accusation was perfect: after the questioning of neo-Nazi and longtime informant Tino Brandt and his handlers in the BfV. The alleged NSU-murderers Beate Zschäpe, Uwe Böhnhardt and Uwe Mundlos radicalized in the orbit of these murky relationships between rightwing extremists and intelligence agents.

But the questionable state of things in Thuringia is not the only factor contributing to rising doubts about the Office for the Protection of the Constitution. The NSU-CD that has supposedly only now been checked in Cologne comes from another highly questionable informant from the rightwing extremist scene. Thomas R., also known as "Corelli" was found dead in his apartment a couple of months ago. It is to be feared that the public will never learn the secrets he took to his grave.

No source protection when it comes to murder!

And then there's former BfV agent Andreas T., who was proven to have been on the scene when the NSU murdered Halit Yozgat. The investigation against him was dropped after a short time. The case files remained sealed to the public as per orders of Volker Bouffier, then interior minister of Hesse. The conservative politician has been promoted; he is now governing the state together with the Green party. A few months ago, an NSU inquiry commission has been instated in Hesse's parliament as well. This commission, too, will come to conclusions that everyone is already aware of: state authorities, and especially those protecting the constitution, have failed.

As long as all files with relations to the NSU remain closed, however, there won't be more than this finding. Pointing to the duty to protect sources, who are shady informants from the right-wing extremist scene, is more than cynical towards the families of the victims. The fact that the background of a race-related series of murders could remain undetected for years is scandalous enough. But the lack of willingness from the Office for the Protection of the Constitution and some politicians to illuminate things is topping it of. And it makes you wonder, what else will come out?