Arab West Report Egyptian press summaries and media research for dialogue

According to Mājid al-Khatīb, author of the article, German government

officials met and agreed on the urgency of developing a terror suspects database and increasing video

surveillance

in airports, railway stations and seaports.

This idea was suggested following a series

of false alarms all

over Europe and a thwarted terror attack that aimed to bomb railway trains in West

Germany last July.

The

meeting was attended by Federal Interior Minister, Wolfgang Schaeuble, the

ministers of interior from

Germany’s 16 states, chief of the federal police force of Germany and head of

German’s external

intelligence agency (BND).

The meeting concluded that Schaeuble was to enact a law

from which a database

about terror suspect will be created to assist the work of the German security

apparatus.

Mājid

quoted the officials as saying that the database will include information on

terror organization affiliations,

possession of weapons, communications, Internet databases, bank accounts,

education, family and religious

background, IDs losses and travel details.

Peter Schaar, the Federal

Data Protection Commissioner in

Germany, has warned of turning Germany into a surveillance-obsessed society.

He said that the data collecting

process is a haphazard and inefficient process that contravenes the

constitution.

The proposed database has

been fiercely opposed by political parties since the idea was

brought about following the September 11, 2001

attacks.