On Monday, the Chaos Computer Club (CCC) and the International League for Human Rights (ILMR), have filed a criminal complaint with the Federal Prosecutor General's office. The complaint is directed against the German federal government, the presidents of the German secret services, namely Bundesnachrichtendienst, Militärischer Abschirmdienst, Bundesamt für Verfassungschutz, and others. We accuse US, British and German secret agents, their supervisors, the German Minister of the Interior as well as the German Chancelor of illegal and prohibited covert intelligence activities, of aiding and abetting of those activities, of violation of the right to privacy and obstruction of justice in office by bearing and cooperating with the electronic surveillance of German citizens by NSA and GCHQ.

After months of press releases about mass surveillance by secret services and offensive attacks on information technology systems, we now have certainty that German and other countries' secret services have violated the German criminal law. With this criminal complaint, we hope to finally initiate investigations by the Federal Prosecutor General against the German government. The CCC has learned with certainty that the leaders of the secret services and the federal government have aided and abetted the commission of these crimes.

It is the understanding of the CCC that these crimes are felonies persuant to German federal laws, specifically 99 StGB (illegal activity as a foreign spy), §§ 201 ff. StGB (violation of privacy) and § 258 StGB (obstruction of justice).

"Every citizen is affected by the massive surveillance of their private communications. Our laws protect us and threatens those responsible for such surveillance with punishment. Therefore an investigation by the Federal Prosecutor General is necessary and mandatory by law – and a matter of course. It is unfortunate that those responsible and the circumstances of their crimes have not been investigated," says Dr. Julius Mittenzwei, attorney and long time member of the CCC.

It is unacceptable that the public offices have not helped in the investigation of these crimes even if the spying is widely visible, for example, in the so called Dagger-Complex and on the August Euler airfield near Griesheim. Together with the International League of Human Rights and digitalcourage e. V., we want to bring to light more information about the illegal activities of German and foreign secret services and intend to bring the offenders of those crimes to accord.

In the criminal complaint, we ask to hear technical expert and whistleblower Edward Snowden as a witness, and that he be provided safe passage and protection against extradition to the US.

We do not only want to call the Federal Prosecutor General's office to investigations but also ask you to get involved and also file a criminal complaint. The text of the complaint is transmitted on demand.

Contact:

H.-Eberhard Schultz and Claus Förster, solicitors

Haus der Demokratie und Menschenrechte, Greifswalder Str. 4, 10405 Berlin

Tel: 030 43725026, Fax: 030 43725027, cf(at)cfoerster.de

Links:

Internationale Liga für Menschenrechte e. V.: http://ilmr.de/

www.menschenrechtsanwalt.de

www.racf.de