How did the East German security system function? What were its key characteristics? How successful was it at keeping East German citizens in line?
The Soviet Union controlled the German prisoners in different ways. They controlled the prisoners mainly with physiological torture. They did not want to physically torture them, because that would not be in line with a democracy. They kind of “pretended to be a democracy.” They also tried to hide the Stasi prison by saying that it was a army camp. The Stasi would make prisoners confess to crimes they did not commit, like spying or terrorism, because since they were a democracy they could not arrest you without a sentence.
One way that the guards psychologically tortured their prisoners, was by putting them in solitary confinement. If you did not follow the rules, you got put in the submarine, which was like underground cells with basically no sunlight and just a bucket for a toilet. They were not allowed to talk to other prisoners. They were in isolation. The guards patrolled 24/7. They did not know who you were, as a prisoner, or what you did, they just knew that you could potentially be a dangerous prisoner. They had crazy rules in the prison too. Such as you were not allowed to exercise. You could not sit or lay on the floor during the day. There was a sleeping order, which meant that you had to sleep on your back with your hands on the bed sheets at night. If you needed to see the doctor, it was probably just a guard in disguise. In the interrogation room they might tell you a family member is really sick to get you to speak up and tell them what they wanted to hear. I liked one of the quotes that the tour guide said. Which was “Who sleeps in democracy, wakes up in dictatorship.”
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