Lutz Heilmann
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Lutz Heilmann (born 7 September 1966 in
Zittau Zittau ( hsb, Žitawa, dsb, Žytawa, pl, Żytawa, cs, Žitava, :de:Oberlausitzer Mundart, Upper Lusatian Dialect: ''Sitte''; from Slavic languages, Slavic "''rye''" (Upper Sorbian and Czech: ''žito'', Lower Sorbian: ''žyto'', Polish: ''żyto' ...
,
East Germany East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...
) is a German politician of the
left-wing Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...
party Die Linke. He was elected to the
Bundestag The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet") is the German federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people. It is comparable to the United States House of Representatives or the House of Commons ...
in the 2005 federal election as a member of the party list in
Schleswig-Holstein Schleswig-Holstein (; da, Slesvig-Holsten; nds, Sleswig-Holsteen; frr, Slaswik-Holstiinj) is the northernmost of the 16 states of Germany, comprising most of the historical duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Sch ...
. Shortly thereafter it was revealed that he had worked for the
Stasi The Ministry for State Security, commonly known as the (),An abbreviation of . was the Intelligence agency, state security service of the East Germany from 1950 to 1990. The Stasi's function was similar to the KGB, serving as a means of maint ...
(the
East German East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...
secret police Secret police (or political police) are intelligence, security or police agencies that engage in covert operations against a government's political, religious, or social opponents and dissidents. Secret police organizations are characteristic of a ...
) from 1985 to 1990. Heilmann drew national and international media attention when he caused the website www.wikipedia.de (not the
German Wikipedia The German Wikipedia (german: Deutschsprachige Wikipedia) is the German-language edition of Wikipedia, a free and publicly editable online encyclopedia. Founded on March 16, 2001, it is the second-oldest Wikipedia (after the English Wikipedia), ...
, but a search portal for it run by
Wikimedia Deutschland Wikimedia chapters are national or sub-national not-for-profit organizations created to promote the interests of Wikimedia projects locally. Chapters are legally independent of the Wikimedia Foundation, entering into an agreement with the founda ...
) to be blocked by a
preliminary injunction An injunction is a legal and equitable remedy in the form of a special court order that compels a party to do or refrain from specific acts. ("The court of appeals ... has exclusive jurisdiction to enjoin, set aside, suspend (in whole or in par ...
on 13 November 2008. His Bundestag term ended in 2009, and he failed to be nominated for a second term.


Revelation of Stasi work

Following his election in 2005, strong controversy erupted when it was revealed by the magazine ''
Der Spiegel ''Der Spiegel'' (, lit. ''"The Mirror"'') is a German weekly news magazine published in Hamburg. With a weekly circulation of 695,100 copies, it was the largest such publication in Europe in 2011. It was founded in 1947 by John Seymour Chaloner ...
'' that he had worked for the
Stasi The Ministry for State Security, commonly known as the (),An abbreviation of . was the Intelligence agency, state security service of the East Germany from 1950 to 1990. The Stasi's function was similar to the KGB, serving as a means of maint ...
(the
East German East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...
secret police) from 1985 to 1990.Spiegel Online - Biografien: Ein Stasi-Mann spaltet die Linkspartei
4 December 2005.
Heilmann is the only official full-time Stasi employee to be elected MP to the Bundestag; although several other Die Linke politicians have been "unofficial" Stasi informants. Heilmann narrowly survived an impeachment by the party electorate following his untruthfulness about his Stasi career prior to becoming a MP. Heilmann worked in the so-called "
Hauptverwaltung Aufklärung The Main Directorate for Reconnaissance (german: ; german: , ) was the foreign intelligence service of the Ministry of State Security (''Stasi''), the main security agency of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany), from 1955 to 1990. ...
Personenschutz" department of Stasi, a large and important department within the Stasi that was directly subordinated under
Erich Mielke Erich Fritz Emil Mielke (; 28 December 1907 – 21 May 2000) was a German communist official who served as head of the East German Ministry for State Security (''Ministerium für Staatsicherheit'' – MfS), better known as the Stasi, from 1957 u ...
. The department was responsible for "personal security", but also took part in regular oppression activities and employed informants. His employment record at Stasi states that Heilmann joined the Stasi because of political motivation and that he identified with his work and saw his future as a Stasi employee. He left Stasi after it was dissolved following the fall of the communist regime. The nomination of Lutz Heilmann as an MP by the Left Party has been strongly criticized by
Hubertus Knabe Hubertus Knabe (born 1959) is a German historian and was the scientific director of the Berlin-Hohenschönhausen Memorial, a museum and memorial in a notorious former Stasi torture prison in Berlin. Knabe is noted for several works on oppression ...
, the director of the
Berlin-Hohenschönhausen Memorial The Berlin-Hohenschönhausen Memorial (german: Gedenkstätte Berlin-Hohenschönhausen) is a museum and memorial located in Berlin's north-eastern Lichtenberg district in the locality of Alt-Hohenschönhausen, part of the former borough of Hoh ...
. Knabe stated that Heilmann "has no business being in parliament", and said it is "unacceptable for the victims of the GDR communist regime to imagine that a man with such a past should serve in a parliament".


Work history

He attended law school from 1992 to 2004, obtaining an undergraduate law degree (''
Diplom-Jurist {{Unreferenced, date=June 2019, bot=noref (GreenC bot) Diplom-Jurist (Dipl.-Jur.) is a master's-level law degree awarded by some German universities. Background Historically, German law students did not receive any academic degree upon completion ...
'') in 2004. During this time, he worked as a cashier at a
filling station A filling station, also known as a gas station () or petrol station (), is a facility that sells fuel and engine lubricants for motor vehicles. The most common fuels sold in the 2010s were gasoline (or petrol) and diesel fuel. Gasoli ...
and as a carpet salesman. After a period of being unemployed (2004–2005) he obtained a position as
articled clerk Articled clerk is a title used in Commonwealth countries for one who is studying to be an accountant or a lawyer. In doing so, they are put under the supervision of someone already in the profession, now usually for two years, but previously thre ...
(''Rechtsreferendar'') at the Landgericht (an intermediate court) in
Lübeck Lübeck (; Low German also ), officially the Hanseatic City of Lübeck (german: Hansestadt Lübeck), is a city in Northern Germany. With around 217,000 inhabitants, Lübeck is the second-largest city on the German Baltic coast and in the stat ...
which he quit after being elected to the Bundestag. In November 2009, he returned to his job as a clerk.


Political activities

Heilmann took part in the "
Jugendweihe Jugendweihe (''Youth consecration'') or Jugendfeier (''Youth ceremony'') is a secular coming of age ceremony practised by German 14-year-olds. It originated among the secular societies in the 19th century as an alternative to Confirmation by th ...
" in 1981. He became a member of the communist party of the
German Democratic Republic German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...
, the
Socialist Unity Party of Germany The Socialist Unity Party of Germany (german: Sozialistische Einheitspartei Deutschlands, ; SED, ), often known in English as the East German Communist Party, was the founding and ruling party of the German Democratic Republic (GDR; East German ...
(SED) in 1986, and has remained a member of its successor parties ( SED-PDS,
PDS PD, P.D., or Pd may refer to: Arts and media * ''People's Democracy'' (newspaper), weekly organ of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) * ''The Plain Dealer'', a Cleveland, Ohio, US newspaper * Post Diaspora, a time frame in the ''Honorverse'' ...
, Die Linkspartei.PDS and now Die Linke), although he left the party in 1992 and rejoined in 2000. Heilmann, who was previously married, has organized participation of the party's queer group at Christopher Street Days. In the Bundestag, his main activity has focused on transportation policy favoring the environment. He argued for an increase in the LKW-MAUT and against a proposed waiver of the motor vehicle tax for new cars. He has been involved in a fight within ''Die Linke'', trying to get Lübeck party boss Ragnar Lüttke expelled from the party. Four-year-old photographs showing Lüttke at a party celebrating
Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secreta ...
's birthday were obtained by a
Flensburg Flensburg (; Danish, Low Saxon: ''Flensborg''; North Frisian: ''Flansborj''; South Jutlandic: ''Flensborre'') is an independent town (''kreisfreie Stadt'') in the north of the German state of Schleswig-Holstein. Flensburg is the centre of the ...
newspaper in October 2008. In 2009 he failed to be nominated again as a Bundestag candidate.


Lawsuit against ''Wikimedia Deutschland''

On 13 November 2008, Heilmann pressed charges against ''Wikimedia Deutschland e.V.'' at the Landgericht Lübeck, obtaining a preliminary injunction which barred the internet address www.wikipedia.de (which is controlled by ''Wikimedia Deutschland'') from linking to de.wikipedia.org (controlled by the U.S.-based ''
Wikimedia Foundation The Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., or Wikimedia for short and abbreviated as WMF, is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization headquartered in San Francisco, California and registered as a charitable foundation under local laws. Best kno ...
'') as long as certain information about him is included in the
German Wikipedia The German Wikipedia (german: Deutschsprachige Wikipedia) is the German-language edition of Wikipedia, a free and publicly editable online encyclopedia. Founded on March 16, 2001, it is the second-oldest Wikipedia (after the English Wikipedia), ...
in the article
Lutz Heilmann Lutz Heilmann (born 7 September 1966 in Zittau, East Germany) is a German politician of the left-wing politics, left-wing party The Left (Germany), Die Linke. He was elected to the Bundestag in the 2005 German federal election, 2005 federal elec ...
. Heilmann also filed legal complaints against one Wikipedia editor and two other online writers. According to ''
Focus Online ''Focus'' (styled as ''FOCUS'') is a German-language news magazine published by Hubert Burda Media. Established in 1993 as an alternative to the '' Der Spiegel'' weekly news magazine, since 2015 the editorial staff has been headquartered in Germ ...
'', Heilmann objected to claims that he had not completed his university degree, and that he had participated in a business venture involving pornography. He did however admit that he had served as "youth protection officer" for an internet sex shop run by a roommate.Linke waschen Schmutzwäsche
''taz'', 22 October 2008.
The report also suggests that the Wikipedia article had been repeatedly altered in line with his claims by an anonymous user operating within the Bundestag building, but Heilmann denied having been involved in an
edit war A wiki ( ) is an online hypertext publication collaboratively edited and managed by its own audience, using a web browser. A typical wiki contains multiple pages for the subjects or scope of the project, and could be either open to the pub ...
. In October 2008, some German newspapers reported that Heilmann was under investigation for having threatened a former roommate and that the committee on immunity of the ''Bundestag'' had lifted his
immunity Immunity may refer to: Medicine * Immunity (medical), resistance of an organism to infection or disease * ''Immunity'' (journal), a scientific journal published by Cell Press Biology * Immune system Engineering * Radiofrequence immunity desc ...
in the matter.Schmutzkampagne in der Linken: Jetzt gerät Heilmann unter Beschuss
, ''Lübecker Nachrichten'', 21 October 2008.
Heilmann denied this and had a counter statement published. (According to ''
Die Tageszeitung ''Die Tageszeitung'' (, “The Daily Newspaper”), is counted as being one of modern Germany's most important newspapers and amongst the top seven. taz is stylized as ''die tageszeitung'' and commonly referred to as ''taz'', is a cooperative-own ...
'' charges were filed due to attempted coercion ("versuchte Nötigung"). Heilmann's response fits this explanation as he states that the committee on immunity of the ''Bundestag'' has dealt on 17 October with the matter in question related to short messages he sent to his former roommate.) This matter was reported in Heilmann's Wikipedia article. This claim, as well as claims that he had withheld parts of his Stasi records, were also cited by Heilmann as reasons for his action against ''Wikimedia Deutschland''. After some statements were removed from his German Wikipedia article and after major media coverage, Heilmann announced on 16 November that he would drop the legal proceedings against ''Wikimedia Deutschland'', regretting that many uninvolved users of the encyclopedia had been affected. He vowed to continue his pursuit of the Wikipedia editor who had originally added the allegedly offensive material. Heilmann later made a public statement on his actions against Wikipedia. "I didn't think it through and didn't anticipate the consequences," he admitted. Wikimedia Germany reported that on the Saturday of the blocking it had received record donations of €16,000, compared to €3,000 on an average day.Abgeordneter ließ Wikipedia sperren
''Manager Magazin'', 16 November 2008.


See also

* Katina Schubert, another politician of ''Die Linke'' who initiated proceedings against Wikipedia


References


External links


Lutz Heilmann
official page at ''Die Linke'', listing his speeches, legislative initiatives and press releases.
Private website

Preliminary injunction from the Landsgericht Lübeck, November 13th, 2008
containing the offending statements. {{DEFAULTSORT:Heilmann, Lutz 1966 births Living people People from Zittau Socialist Unity Party of Germany politicians Party of Democratic Socialism (Germany) politicians The Left (Germany) politicians 21st-century German politicians Members of the Bundestag for Schleswig-Holstein Union of Persecutees of the Nazi Regime members Stasi officers Gay politicians LGBT members of the Bundestag German LGBT rights activists Members of the Bundestag for the Party of Democratic Socialism (Germany)