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they took on added significance because of the large number of student demonstrators whose parents were members of the party and government elite. The confidence of the regime in the effectiveness of its political indoctrination program was understandably shaken, and a number of high-ranking party and government officials whose children were involved were either fired or demoted. Despite vigorous efforts by the SED to instill political "reliability" in the ranks of the Young Pioneers and the Free German Youth, many of their members have retreated to a position of passive participation in the activities of these organizations, while a number of others have become sophisticated critics of the government and its policies.
The dissident movement among young East Germans was fragmented after the crisis in Czechoslovakia subsided and now consists of numerous small, normally passive, loosely organized and ideologically differentiated groups. They meet to discuss politics and to exchange dissident literature and only occasionally display their opposition to the regime overtly, since such actions often result in the arrest of the participants. The authorities monitor the dissidence closely and attempt to keep it under strict control, but they have not been able to eliminate it. The young dissidents oppose the regime on grounds that it is not representative of the population. They favor greater personal freedom and are particularly critical of the regime's restrictive cultural policies and of the inefficiency of its over centralized bureaucracy.
e. The churches
The Evangelical and Roman Catholic churches have been the only nongovernmental institutions permitted by the regime to maintain independent contacts with West Germany. However, strict governmental control of the domestic and foreign activities of the churches, particularly contacts with West Germany, severely limits their effectiveness.
The contacts of the Evangelical Church with its sister church in the Federal Republic were further restricted in 1969 when a regime-sponsored plan was adopted providing for the formation of a separate East German church and the subsequent severing of organizational ties with the Evangelical Church in West Germany. All eight established territorial churches (Landeskirchen) of the Evangelical Church in East Germany yielded to pressure by the regime and agreed to establish a separate organization called the League of Evangelical Churches (BEK), but the constitution of the new organization continues to stress the all-German aspect of Protestantism in both East Germany and the Federal Republic. Despite regime pressures, church leaders have refused to delete these references from the BEK's constitution.
The Roman Catholic Church, like the Evangelical Church, is a potential rallying point for opposition but church authorities have gone out of their way to avoid a confrontation with the regime in order to prevent additional restrictions and harassment. On what it considers vital issues, however, the Catholic Church has tended to be more outspoken than the Evangelical Church and more adamant in its stand. In order to protect its own members and clergy in East Germany, the Catholic Church generally avoids focusing international attention on the internal East German situation unless a specific issue is considered worth the risks involved.
Both the Roman Catholic and Evangelical churches are extremely circumspect in voicing opinions on secular matters. Even during the tense period of the Czechoslovak crisis, the reaction of religious leaders was muted. By accepting restrictions on their traditional rights and freedoms in secular matters and by demonstrating their willingness to "render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's" religious leaders hope to ensure the continued existence of the churches. Although some Protestant churchmen have lent their support to the regime, for the most part the churches have tried to resist Communist indoctrination of the faithful and other ideological pressures.
Despite the conciliatory gestures of the Evangelical and Catholic Churches, the SED continues to regard organized religion as a competitor for the loyalties of the people and a potential source of dissidence which the state is compelled to neutralize, if not undermine and destroy, regardless of past agreements. Under Honecker there has been a renewed attempt to isolate believers from the rest of society and to diminish the role of the churches. Thus, in March 1971, the regime moved to restrict even further the activities of the clergy by requiring the churches to report all "non-religious" functions to the police, a requirement that is being fought by the Evangelical and Catholic leaders. In addition, new requirements for admissions to the universities discriminate against youths who are avowed Christians.
F. Maintenance of internal security (S)
1. Police
The primary mission of the police forces is to ferret out and control domestic opposition to the regime. Combating ordinary crime and protecting the rights and safety of the population are secondary functions
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