GERMAN DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC
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LAND
108,262 km2; 43% arable, 15% meadows and pasture, 27% forested, 15% other
Land boundaries: 2,309 km
WATER
Limits of territorial waters (claimed): 3 nm
Coastline: 901 km (including islands)
PEOPLE
Population: 16,738,000, including East Berlin (July 1982), average annual growth rate 0.0%
Nationality: noun—German(s); adjective—German
Ethnic divisions: 99.7% German, 0.3% Slavic and other
Religion: 53% Protestant, 8% Roman Catholic, 39% unaffiliated or other; less than 5% of Protestants and about 25% of Roman Catholics actively participate
Language: German, small Sorb (West Slavic) minority
Literacy: 99%
Labor force: 8.7 million; 38.0% industry; 3.2% handicrafts; 7.1% construction; 8.6% agriculture; 7.4% transport and communications; 10.3% commerce; 20.1% services; 3.2% other Organized labor: 87.7% of total labor force
GOVERNMENT
Official name: German Democratic Republic
Type: Communist state
Capital: East Berlin (not officially recognized by US, UK, and France, which together with the USSR have special rights and responsibilities in Berlin)
Political subdivisions: (excluding East Berlin) 14 districts (Bezirke), 218 counties (Kreise), 7,600 communities (Gemeinden)
Legal system: civil law system modified by Communist legal theory; new constitution adopted 1974; court system parallels administrative divisions; no judicial review of legislative acts; legal education at Universities of Berlin, Leipzig, Halle, and Jena; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction; more stringent penal code adopted 1968, amended in 1974 and 1979
National holiday: Foundation of German Democratic Republic, 7 October
Branches: legislative—Volkskammer (elected directly); executive—Chairman of Council of State, Chairman of Council of Ministers, Cabinet (approved by Volkskammer); judiciary—Supreme Court; entire structure dominated by Socialist Unity (Communist) Party
Government leaders: Chairman, Council of State, Erich HONECKER (Head of State); Chairman, Council of Ministers, Willi STOPH (Premier)
Suffrage: all citizens age 18 and over
Elections: national every five years; prepared by an electoral commission of the National Front; ballot supposed to be secret and voters permitted to strike names off ballot; more candidates than offices available; parliamentary elections held 14 June 1981, and local elections held 20 May 1979
Political parties and leaders: Socialist Unity (Communist) Party (SED), headed by General Secretary Erich Honecker, dominates the regime; four token parties (Christian Democratic Union, National Democratic Party, Liberal Democratic Party, and Democratic Peasant's Party) and an amalgam of special interest organizations participate with the SED in National Front
Voting strength: 1981 parliamentary elections and 1979 local elections; over 99% voted the regime slate
Communists: 2.1 million party members
Other special interest groups: Free German Youth, Free German Trade Union Federation, Democratic Women's Federation of Germany, German Cultural Federation (all Communist dominated)
Member of: CEMA, IAEA, ICES, ILO, IMCO, IPU, ITU, UN, UNESCO, UPU, Warsaw Pact, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
ECONOMY
GNP: $135.4 billion (1980, 1980 dollars), $8,089 per capita; 1980 growth rate 2.6%
Agriculture: food deficit area; main crops—potatoes, rye, wheat, barley, oats, industrial crops; shortages in grain, vegetables, vegetable oil, beef; caloric intake, 3,000 calories per day per capita (1971)
Fish catch: 244,237 metric tons (1980)
Major industries: metal fabrication, chemicals, light industry, brown coal, and shipbuilding
Shortages: coking coal, coke, crude oil, rolled steel products, nonferrous metals
