Questioning
"Mister Peter for Questioning"
"Photography of railway installations is permitted on the railing of the Deutsche Reichsbahn accessible to the public." In this or a similar way, the lifting of the ban on photography in 1973/1974 by the Deutsche Reichsbahn was published in the railway magazines in Western Germany. Of course there were exceptions for border fortifications, military fortifications, etc.
In fact, the wording of the order cited is somewhat different. It stated what is subject to authorisation: "Film, photo and television shots of objects, railway installations and vehicles located on premises not open to the public are subject to authorisation".
After that it was probably allowed to photograph a steam engine of class 01 in the Ostbahnhof directly at the platform. But not if she was passing Warschauer Straße station with her train on the through track. It probably depended on where the object was and not the photographer. And in case of doubt, the exceptions would probably have taken effect anyway.
As a railway friend in the GDR I almost regularly came into conflict with more or less friendly hints from railwaymen, travellers or the "officers"; to stop taking pictures of locomotives or trains immediately. I have described a contact in my story "Vopos in Wuhlheide".
Click here to read my story about Vopos in Wuhlheide
Also parcels with exchange consignments with model railway friends in the GDR arrived with me regularly opened by the customs. Fortunately everything was always undamaged and nothing was ever missing!
Click here to read my story Snowstorm in the Steam Locomotive Paradise
After the opening of the border I was interested in the data collected about me in the GDR. Therefore, on 01. 08. 2013, I submitted an "Application for Information, Inspection of Documents and Publication of Duplicates of Documents of the State Security Service of the Former German Democratic Republic" to "Der Bundesbeauftragte für die Unterlagen des Staatssicherheitsdienstes der ehemaligen Deutschen Demokratischen Republik".
In a letter dated 13. 08. 2013 I received the confirmation of receipt, and on 10. 09. 2013 the information that searches in the files and databases of the Central Berlin Office and the Chemnitz Branch Office have shown that documents may be available, and that due to the high number of applications, a waiting period of probably three years is to be expected.
Dated on 15. 08. 2013 I received the documents in August 2015. Because of the small size the copies were made available to me free of charge.
There's an "information" signed by a major and a lieutenant.
How did this happen?
As described in my story "Snowstorm in the Steam Locomotive Paradise"...
...we had met a railway fan from East Berlin during earlier steam locomotive tours in Berlin. He had given me a railroad time table of the Deutsche Reichsbahn, which unfortunately could not always be bought at every station.
In return, he asked me for a railroad time table from the Deutsche Bundesbahn. I have pointed out to him that I have to declare the time table on entry. It had a few hundred pages and weighed around 3 lb. It wasn't easy to hide it in your socks or underpants. For sure I would be asked for the details of the receiver of it. He agreed to give up his name and address on demand.
So I trudged through the snow to the Heinrich-Heine-Straße, where in the middle of a through road a border crossing divided a city into two different states. A strange idea today, that the Königsallee in Düsseldorf or the Prager Straße in Dresden would end at the border to another country.
After proper declaration of the items which I carried with me, I was brought into a windowless room and felt "soft-boiled" for at least half an hour before a nice gentleman asked me about harmless topics. The procedure took another good hour. I was not allowed to take the DB time table with me, because it probably violated the following regulation:
"Items not permitted on entry: literature and other printed matter the contents of which are directed against the maintenance of peace or the importation of which is otherwise contrary to the interests of the socialist state and its citizens."
Whether it was directed against the preservation of peace or otherwise contradicted the interests of the socialist state and its citizens, I did not dare to determine. After consuming many agent films, my guess was that there was a fear that secret codes might be hidden in the long rows of numbers. I received a receipt so that I could take the time table back with me in the evening when I left. Here the questioning started again: why, why, why, for whom etc. . In reply to my objection that his colleague had already noted everything down in the morning, I received the answer: "Nothing is being noted down here".
Well, see for yourself:
Of course I had a very queasy feeling. In this case, the parties involved probably only did their duty and were certainly formally correct. But when I was 20 years old, I really got a twinge of anxiety back then.
Back to overview Railway Stories
When I left the country with my red R 4 the day after next, the entire contents of my car were turned upside down in a separate garage. But then I had already got used to the mostly only psychological intimidation, e. g. through interviews and examinations in the closed rooms.