Darmstädter Signal is an independent organization (military

watchdog group Watchdog journalism is a form of investigative journalism where journalists, authors or publishers of a news publication fact-check and interview political and public figures to increase accountability in democratic governance systems. Role ...

) opposing

weapons of mass destruction A weapon of mass destruction (WMD) is a Biological agent, biological, chemical weapon, chemical, Radiological weapon, radiological, nuclear weapon, nuclear, or any other weapon that can kill or significantly harm many people or cause great dam ...

and the primary use of military means to solve conflicts. It was founded in 1983 as a group of officers, soldiers and civil Army employees of the German

Bundeswehr The (, ''Federal Defence'') are the armed forces of the Germany, Federal Republic of Germany. The is divided into a military part (armed forces or ''Streitkräfte'') and a civil part, the military part consists of the four armed forces: Germ ...

. According to its mission statement, the organization respects the German Army's role-defending the country within the existing legal framework, but strives to give critical feedback about the Army's mission and alternative non-military concepts of conflict resolution. The Darmstädter Signal sees the central task of the Bundeswehr in defence of freedom and democracy as basic principles of the country.

History

The organization was founded during September 1983 in

Darmstadt Darmstadt () is a city in the States of Germany, state of Hesse in Germany, located in the southern part of the Frankfurt Rhine Main Area, Rhine-Main-Area (Frankfurt Metropolitan Region). Darmstadt has around 160,000 inhabitants, making it the ...

by 20 officers and

Unteroffizier () is a junior non-commissioned officer rank used by the . It is also the collective name for all non-commissioned officers in Austria and Germany. It was formerly a rank in the Imperial Russian Army. Austria , also , is the collective name to ...

. The main point of the pacifist appeal "Darmstädter Signal" was opposition to the deployment of new

nuclear weapons A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either nuclear fission, fission (fission or atomic bomb) or a combination of fission and nuclear fusion, fusion reactions (thermonuclear weap ...

/missiles in Central Europe as a result of the

NATO Double-Track Decision The NATO Double-Track Decision was the decision by NATO from December 12, 1979, to offer the Soviet Union and Warsaw Pact a mutual limitation of medium-range ballistic missiles and intermediate-range ballistic missiles amidst the Soviet invasion o ...

. To this day, the working group demands the removal of

and of American nuclear weapons in Germany. Supporters of the DS on March 15, 1986 founded the development association of the DS. Today, 130 members belong to the working group and 200 supporters in the development association. Annually, two to three workshops and public meetings take place to define positions and to draw attention to new developments through talks and lectures. Several former Federal Ministers, active and former members of the German Federal Parliament/

Bundestag The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet (assembly), Diet") is the lower house of the Germany, German Federalism in Germany, federal parliament. It is the only constitutional body of the federation directly elected by the German people. The Bundestag wa ...

as well as several former Generals of the

are members of the development association. Spokesmen of the development association were

Horst-Eberhard Richter Horst-Eberhard Richter (28 April 1923 – 19 December 2011) was a German psychoanalyst, psychosomatist and social philosopher. The author of numerous books was also regarded by many as the ''große alte Mann'' of the Federal German Peace moveme ...

, Gernot Erler and Konrad Gilges. Since autumn 2013, the retired General-Surgeon Karl Wilhelm Demmer is in this function.

Goals

On the basis of the principle of Inner Leadership (= leadership & participation & education) ( Innere Führung) with its corollary of the citizen in uniform Rose, Juergen. Demokratisierung der Bundeswehr als Schritt auf dem Weg zum Frieden. ( Staatsbuerger in Uniform) the "Signalers" use their fundamental right of free speech also in public and contribute to assure that the norms and values of the

German Basic Law The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany () is the constitution of the Federal Republic of Germany. The West German Constitution was approved in Bonn on 8 May 1949 and came into effect on 23 May after having been approved by the oc ...

remain embedded in the

. The concept of Innere Führung was introduced during the early years of foundation of the new German armed forces after

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and especially advocated by Lieutenant General Wolf Graf von Baudissin. It is a hallmark making the difference between

and

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...

. Important goals of the Working Group are the removal of nuclear warheads and the democratization of armed forces. Darmstädter Signal does not reflect a general or official image of the mood and opinion in the German armed forces. The 25th anniversary of the organization was celebrated in the House of History in

Bonn Bonn () is a federal city in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, located on the banks of the Rhine. With a population exceeding 300,000, it lies about south-southeast of Cologne, in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ruhr region. This ...

with a laudatio by

Egon Bahr Egon Karl-Heinz Bahr (; 18 March 1922 – 19 August 2015) was a German SPD politician. The former journalist was the creator of the ''Ostpolitik'' promoted by West German Chancellor Willy Brandt, for whom he served as Secretary of State in ...

. For 27 years, Helmuth Prieß had been the spokesman of the Signal.

Demands

*Absolute precedence of peace keeping and peaceful solutions of conflicts over military missions. *Strict abidance of the army to constitutional principles and international law. *Empowerment of UN and

OSCE The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is a regional security-oriented intergovernmental organization comprising member states in Europe, North America, and Asia. Its mandate includes issues such as arms control, the pr ...

*Removal of all

*National defence in alliance *Reduction of the German Army to 120,000 soldiers *No participation in peace-enforcing military missions *Participation in peace-keeping Blue Beret Missions *Removal of the atomic warheads from Buechel and RamsteinLeyendecker, Hans; Obermaier, Frederik; Obermayer, Bastian (11 December 2013). "Secret U.S. drone bases in Germany revealed". International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. Retrieved 28 February 2017. *No in-country missions of the German armed forces *End of weapon exports *Democratization of armed forces *Open discussion of ethic questions of soldierhood

References

External links

* *https://www.uni-marburg.de/konfliktforschung/publikationen/wp14.pdf *http://hdl.handle.net/10945/28882; Donald Abenheim: The Citizen in Uniform: Reform and its Critics in the Bundeswehr, Monterey, California, 1988-02, Calhoun, The NPS institutional Archive *http://www.weissbuch.org/den-fortgesetzten-rechtsbruch-unmissverstaendlich-beenden/ *https://www.volkswagenstiftung.de/aktuelles-presse/aktuelles/aktdetnewsl/news/detail/artikel/die-einfache-evidenz-der-gefahr.html {{Authority control Bundeswehr Civic and political organisations of Germany Darmstadt