Block 1

Freedom of expression is anchored in Article 5 of the Basic Law (Grundgesetz). It covers the right to voice one's opinion in speech, writing, and images: including against the government and its authorities. Religious freedom (Art. 4) and voting rights (Art. 38) are separate basic rights and not the basis for criticism of the government.

Religious education is a regular school subject under Article 7 of the Basic Law, but parents decide whether their child participates up to the child's 14th birthday. From age 14, the child decides for themselves (Religionsmündigkeit: religious majority).

Rechtsstaat (constitutional state) means all government action is bound by law. No one is above the law: not the government, not the police, not the Chancellor. Courts can review state action. The opposite concepts are 'police state' and arbitrary rule.

Basic rights (Grundrechte) are in Articles 1-19 of the Basic Law. They include freedom of expression (Art. 5), religion (Art. 4), assembly (Art. 8), and choice of profession (Art. 12). Unlike the US, there is NO basic right to bear arms in Germany.

In a free election, no one (neither the state, employers, nor family) may influence how someone votes or punish them for voting a particular way. 'Free' is one of five core principles: German elections are also universal, direct, equal, and secret.

Germany's constitution is called the Grundgesetz (Basic Law). It was adopted in 1949 originally as a provisional document for West Germany, has applied to all of Germany since reunification in 1990, and is the foundation for all laws and state action.

Article 4 of the Basic Law guarantees freedom of religion and conscience: including the freedom to practice a religion or none at all. The right to choose a party or profession is a basic right; entitlement to welfare is regulated by ordinary law, not a basic right in the strict sense.

The Basic Law guarantees equality BEFORE the law (Art. 3), not economic equality of outcome. Anyone may earn as much as they can: the state provides equal opportunity and a social safety net, not equal wealth.

The right to asylum (Art. 16a Basic Law) is the only basic right that applies exclusively to non-Germans. Politically persecuted people have a constitutional claim to asylum. All other basic rights apply to everyone in Germany regardless of citizenship.

Monetary fines are a core form of punishment in German law. Penalties forbidden by the Basic Law are the death penalty (Art. 102), torture and corporal punishment (Art. 104(1)), and inhuman or degrading penalties.

Germany's constitution is called 'Grundgesetz' (Basic Law) rather than 'Verfassung' (constitution) because in 1949 it was originally intended only as a provisional document for West Germany. After 1990 the name stayed, even though it now serves the full function of a constitution.

Press freedom (Art. 5 Basic Law) is a basic right. Basic rights cannot be abolished by a simple Bundestag majority: a party attempting this acts unconstitutionally. A constitutional amendment would also fail under Art. 79(3), the 'eternity clause' protecting core rights forever.

The opposition consists of all elected MPs whose parties are not part of the government. Their job is to scrutinise the government, propose alternative policies, and strengthen democracy through debate. They have specific rights (e.g. demanding parliamentary inquiries).

Freedom of expression means you may state your opinion freely, including online and including against the government. It has limits, though: insults are punishable, and publicly displaying the symbols of unconstitutional or terrorist organisations such as Nazi, Hamas, or Islamic State insignia is prohibited.

Forced labour is prohibited by Article 12(3) of the Basic Law: a direct response to the Nazi era. Only court-ordered work during detention is permitted. General military or civilian service obligations are a separate legal matter.

Freedom of expression has limits. It ends where others' rights are violated: false factual claims about individuals (defamation), insults, incitement to hatred, distribution of child pornography, or Holocaust denial are criminal offences in Germany.

Article 3 of the Basic Law forbids the state from treating people unequally based on gender, origin, language, religion, or political views. Authorities must treat all citizens equally; violations can be challenged in court.

Human dignity is 'inviolable' under Article 1(1) of the Basic Law: the supreme basic right, which cannot be removed even by constitutional amendment (eternity clause Art. 79(3)). A direct response to the crimes of the Nazi era.

Freedom of movement (Art. 11 Basic Law) is the right to choose one's residence and place of stay anywhere in Germany. Nobody can be forced to live in a specific location. Within the EU, EU freedom of movement additionally applies to Union citizens.

Parties that seek to abolish the free democratic basic order are unconstitutional (Art. 21 Basic Law). Only the Federal Constitutional Court (not the government) can decide on a ban. In the history of the Federal Republic, only two parties have been banned: SRP (1952) and KPD (1956).

The federal coat of arms shows a black, single-headed eagle with a red beak, tongue, and talons on a gold background. Two features decide it: only one head (the double-headed eagle belonged to the Holy Roman Empire and Austria-Hungary) and the plain gold field with no crown.

Germany is a republic: the head of state is elected, not born into the office. The Federal President is chosen by the Federal Convention for a five-year term. A monarchy or principality requires a hereditary head of state, and a dictatorship rules out free elections: neither applies to Germany.

Around nine in ten working people in Germany are in dependent employment: that is, employed by a company or a public authority and covered by social insurance. The self-employed make up only about a tenth. Volunteering is by definition not gainful employment, since it does not provide a living.

The Federal Republic of Germany consists of 16 federal states. There were eleven until 1990; reunification added the five eastern states of Brandenburg, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Thuringia. Three of the 16 are city-states: Berlin, Hamburg, and Bremen.

Germany has 16 federal states (three of them city-states: Berlin, Hamburg, Bremen). Elsass-Lothringen (Alsace-Lorraine) was part of the German Reich from 1871 to 1918 but today belongs to France (Région Grand Est): it is not a German federal state.

Article 20 of the Basic Law defines Germany as a "democratic and social federal state". Democratic means state authority derives from the people. Social means the state protects citizens against life's risks. Federal means power is divided between the national government and the states.

Germany is a federal state: the national government and the 16 states share state power, and both levels have their own parliaments, governments, and areas of responsibility. Education and policing, for example, belong to the states; defence and currency belong to the federal level.

Members of the Bundestag are elected by the electorate: all German citizens aged 18 and over. This is popular sovereignty from Article 20 of the Basic Law put into practice. The military, business, and the civil service have no say in it whatsoever.

The heraldic animal of the Federal Republic is the eagle: specifically the black federal eagle. It stands in a tradition reaching back through the Holy Roman Empire to the Roman legionary eagle, and was adopted in its present form in 1950.

Press censorship (prior state control of media) is explicitly forbidden under Article 5 of the Basic Law and incompatible with democracy. Features of German democracy include free elections, press freedom, freedom of assembly, and separation of powers.