Germany Report 2004 Brussels, Belgium

A new registered society: organisational structure

What used to be a network has now become a registered society founded on November 22, 2003 with 11 members. Non-profit status has been granted until May 2005. Bodies stipulated by the statutes are: annual conference of members, executive board, working groups (currently: campaign for legislation, PR activities, “Taxes into Ploughshares”/churches) and mandated individuals. Members of the executive board are: Friedrich Heilmann (chairman), Hannelore Morgenstern-Przygoda, Sepp Rottmayr (executive director).

Finance

Activities are financed by donations and occasional contributions by churches. In November 2004, a budget is to be adopted for the first time. Activities are mostly voluntary and rarely remunerated or contract-based.

Tasks (according to Statutes)

Netzwerk Friedenssteuer e.V. is a registered society with the exclusive and direct purpose of spiritually and ethically promoting the general public. It shall promote international understanding, membership and cooperation (content, staff, finance) in CPTI, organise international conferences in Germany and support participation in international encounters abroad. It shall promote science and research, in particular research of the constitutional aspects of fiscal law in the context of § 4, German Constitution (freedom of religion and conscience). For this purpose it shall collect and document national and international literature, parliamentary bills and case law as well as support scientific activities in this field. It shall educate the general public by way of public lectures, discussions, information and seminar events as well as signature campaigns, conversations and publications, which raise awareness of the individual’s responsibility for war and peace in particular through his or her tax payments and discuss possible legislation to remedy this. It is a non-profit association. No profit is sought.

Activities

Redirect taxes for peace Collection of signatures to the statement: “Nobody may be forced against his or her conscience to contribute towards financing armaments and the military by way of taxes and levies. Instead there must be a guarantee that these will be used for civilian purposes.” 10,000 signatures had been collected by April. These are to be submitted to the German President in the autumn.
Lobbying Members of the German Parliament: Within the course of one year there have been 100 contacts and 35 meetings. Result: 6 MPs are supporters, 5 not adverse.
Formation of an MP working group across party lines to submit a draft bill to the German Parliament. A first explorative meeting took place in March
Counselling and supporting war tax resistors. In April, the first instance legal proceedings against the Rambows from Gotha took place. They were supported by a group of demonstrators. Legal action at the German Constitutional Court is pending.
Documentation of case law was started in 2004.
With the help of seminars for small groups and participation in special events, the general public and interested organisations may be given information and signatures may be collected (e.g. at the Peace Conference in Munich, in February 2004, which was organised because of the NATO military conference taking place there; at a trade union demonstration in April 2004; at the “Alternatives to Violence” Conference in Stuttgart in May 2004).
The folder containing basic information is being updated. And there is further information available for specific events.
Netzwerk Friedenssteuer has joined other peace organisations, some of which have added our signature lists to their newsletters.
We had a stand at the 2003 Ökumenischer Kirchentag in Berlin, as we do at the biannial Deutscher Evangelischer Kirchentag. In view of the Decade to overcome Violence, we made a proposal for a campaign to the Protestant Church – and are still waiting for an answer.

New: Concept for a “Civilian tax bill”, November 2003:

This Civilian Tax Law will require a dependent separate fund, “German Military Fund”, to be set up by the German government and administered by the Minister of Defence.
The German Military Fund is to finance all expenses concerning the military and armaments. Outside this fund, no taxpayer’s money shall be earmarked to this purpose. Contributions or loans from the federal states or other tax funded entities to the German Military Fund shall not be allowed.
The German Military Fund shall be exclusively funded by a percentage of income and/or payroll tax. The federal states’ share in income tax shall not be affected. The percentage shall be determined once a year by Parliament’s budget law.
Pursuant to §4 German Constitution, persons subject to income or payroll tax shall have the right to have their income and/or payroll tax directed 100% to the civilian budget (civilian tax payers).

Netzwerk Friedenssteuer expects the joint commitment of all WTR and PTC organisations to enshrining the right to conscientious objection and military tax resistance in the European Constitution and to a clear separation of civilian and military expenditure at the European level.

New: 5 Peace Movement Campaigns

In September 2003, Netzwerk Friedenssteuer attended the first strategy conference of the German organisation “Cooperation for Peace”. A decision was taken to develop 5 campaigns to be supported by member organisations: One campaign comprises two parts: cut military expenditure, “5% campaign” and “Redirect taxes to peace”. This is the first time Netzwerk Friedenssteuer is in intensive contact with the German peace movement. “Cooperation for Peace” have drawn up guidelines for peace.

In September 2003, NWFS celebrated its 20^th anniversary with a nice little party in Heidelberg, where it was founded.