Saxony has had a new interior minister for a good month. On Wednesday, CDU Minister Armin Schuster outlined his plans for a “safe and liveable Saxony”. There are many tasks.
Dresden (dpa / sn) – Saxony’s new Interior Minister Armin Schuster (CDU) has campaigned for the security authorities to be strengthened in the face of major upheavals and uncertainty in society. In his first government statement in the state parliament, he described the interior department as the foundation for a strong Saxony. The corona pandemic has torn deep rifts. “Many people have become radicalized, anger and anger have often vented in a terrible way on social media and in ‘anti-corona’ demonstrations. Emergency services have been attacked, political elected officials and media representatives have been threatened.” The end of the crisis is not in sight.
According to Schuster, most forms of crime are developing rapidly, not only in the real world but also in the virtual world – hate speech, child pornography, online fraud, industrial espionage, hacker attacks, disinformation and even criminal services. “There is no all-clear for right-wing and left-wing extremism, no all-clear for Islamist terrorism and no all-clear for digital and hybrid threats. Our radar screens are full.”
Schuster wants to significantly strengthen the fight against child pornography. Saxony is not only taking part in a nationwide campaign against child pornography, he emphasized. More resources will have to be made available to the police departments and the State Criminal Police Office. “It’s about specially trained police officers who, in addition to the well-known forms of crime, can also better fight digital crime in all its forms.” The pressure of persecution must be increased here, as in the area of ??hatred and agitation. The fight against cross-border crime remains a priority.
Schuster put his government declaration under the motto “With citizenship – for a strong, safe and livable Saxony”. He went into all areas of his departments from local politics to sports. With the amendment of the law on fire protection, rescue services and disaster control, Saxony wants to set standards in Germany, the minister emphasized. In this context, he announced his own support program for sirens.
The work of the police took up a lot of space. Schuster had spoken out in advance for more officials. He did not give a specific number on Wednesday. At the same time, he addressed the Saxon police, which had suffered damage to its image as a result of numerous affairs. A quality offensive will be launched with key issues such as leadership quality, process quality, error culture and internal climate. Schuster again spoke out in favor of a stronger police presence in rural areas. Bodycams should be part of the basic equipment on patrol duty in the future.
Schuster didn’t only condemn attacks on police officers. “Anyone who attacks officials and elected officials, police officers and media representatives, has us as their opponent.” Therefore, one wants to further expand a protection program for these target groups. Legal scope for action by the police and the protection of the constitution is consistently not interpreted to the advantage of extremists. “Where the de-escalating behavior of the police is not understood or abused, strength must be shown and violations of the rules must be countered with low intervention thresholds.”
