The Basic Law and the Constitution of West Germany - Germany

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  • Created by: RConwa_y
  • Created on: 22-05-18 08:10
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  • The Basic Law and the Constitution of West Germany
    • The main feature of Basic Law
      • Freedom of expression, assembly, association and movement
      • A "representative democracy" whereby popular participation s limited to voting every few years
      • The federal state was introduced. Individual states kept power over regional issues, but the Bundesrat had power over national issues
      • Bundestag was elected by a complex system combining proportional representation with first past the poss. Parties had to get 5% of the vote before they were represented
      • All parties had to uphold democracy. Extremist parties who did not do this were banned
      • The Law was temporary until Germany was united. All those who left the DDR and lived in former German lands were permitted to live in the West
      • The president was not directly elected, but was chosen by representative convention. The powers of the president were limited and prevented rule by decree
      • The chancellor was appointed by the president, but required parliamentary approval. The chancellor could not be dismissed unless another one was voted in
    • The number of small parties declined
      • The constitution banned far-right and far-left parties
      • From 1953, the 5 per cent hurdle at federal level prevented smaller parties from gaining representation in the Bundestag
      • Small parties were often divided
      • Many right wing groups joined the CDU
      • There were many social changes during the period
    • De-Nazification
      • Many former Nazis political responsibilities were imprisoned
      • The Allies wanted to remove Nazis from all societal positions. This was impractical. They decided to deal with Nazis on a case by case basis in 1946
      • Many Nazis played down their past roles because of harsh punishments. They produced affidavits to show they were clear - this didn't help Germany's new cause
      • When German authorities took over, many Nazis escaped punishment because they were useful in the anti-communist agenda

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