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13.09.06
If in doubt, make 'em pay
Since April 1st, 2005, German tax departments are able to retrieve information about all financial accounts and their balance of every German citizen – even without the consent of the respective banks. Most people are not aware of this, since this change was not much publicized in the media. I remember feeling a bit uneasy about this at the time. An article in the German “manager magazin” shows in detail, why everyone should feel uneasy about this, even if they “have nothing to hide”. A few select quotes:
Random sampling in Northrine-Westphalia showed that nine out of ten account enquiries were not justified adequately.
…
Munich tax criminal law expert Jan Olaf Leisner says: "Just a few years ago, the civil servants were ready to discuss disputed issues before demanding tax payments. But today, they will often file a tax notice immediately. And to increase pressure, in most cases the authorities will start a criminal procedure immediately.“
…
And during the house search, the tax department's investigator supposedly intimidated company owner Torsten Werlin's (name changed) children massively: “Your dad will probably go to prison soon”, a civil servant sneered. Werlin's wife could endure the pressure of the state power and the neighbour's whispering soon enough: she filed for divorce. When after a several year-long lawsuit the judges finally confirmed that the tax claims were not justified, the company had filed for bankruptcy long ago.
If that's not enough, you can find more examples in the lawblog. Again, it shows that the state shouldn't be trusted too much. In the end, state power is exercised by (fallible) humans.
Posted by crenz, 13.09.06 22:49
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