In an interview with the Süddeutsche Zeitung, Clemens Murr, responsible member of the executive GdP federal executive board, and federal chairman Jochen Kopelke outlined the alarming situation among the riot police. They demand the creation of around 2,500 additional jobs. The aim is to expand the riot police nationwide by at least 20 hundred. According to the union, this is the only way to cope with the greatly increased workload.

Operational capability at risk

Murr emphasized in a social media post that the reinforcements now required would probably not even be sufficient given future challenges. The GdP is particularly critical of the equipment situation. A significant investment backlog jeopardizes operational readiness. Currently, not even the continuous supply of basic consumables, emergency food, emergency clothing and fuels and lubricants to all emergency services is guaranteed.

More budget for central coordination

In addition to increasing staff, the GdP is pushing for a significant increase in the budget of the Federal Ministry of the Interior. The inspector of the state riot police is located there and carries out central coordination tasks. Kopelke emphasizes: All employees – whether civil servants or collectively agreed employees, whether on the front line or in the background – must be ready for action at all times. This is the case for the staff, but not for technology and equipment. Secure means of communication and effective drone defense also need to be urgently examined.

Versatile tasks with increasing loads

The riot police are deployed in “special situations” – during large demonstrations, risky football games, state visits or disasters. The latter also includes attacks on critical infrastructure, which have increased dramatically in recent years. Around 16,000 civil servants are available in the states, and a further 7,000 are at the federal level. The federal police are under particular pressure due to new border controls: around 15,000 of the riot police subordinate to them are currently on permanent duty there.

Return to police self-sufficiency

The GdP warns of the consequences of the extensive privatizations of the past decades. For Murr it is clear: a functioning police force needs more independence when it comes to infrastructure and logistics. This is the only way to ensure that the police carry out their tasks reliably without any dependencies.

Political background

The starting point for the current discussion is the federal government’s response to a small question from the Greens. This reveals a significant need to catch up with closed units in almost all areas.

The union leaves no doubt: Germany needs more riot police, better equipment and a resilient infrastructure. Only then does what Murr formulated as the core message apply: “We should control the situation – not the situation control us.”

Here is the original article in the Süddeutsche Zeitung.

Here is the text of the article on the GdP website