Thuringia’s Minister of the Interior, Georg Maier, believes that violence against emergency services is primarily a social problem. In an interview with the magazine Behörden Spiegel, he emphasizes that existing laws are sufficient and instead advocates education and campaigns such as “Respect the rescuers”. Thuringia is also pursuing its own path in civil protection: instead of a state office, the state is relying on a new department within the Ministry of the Interior. The aim is to provide more efficient, less bureaucratic protection – with better support for local authorities and centralized procurement in cooperation with other federal states. In the area of crisis management, trust is being placed in the sense of responsibility of municipal decision-makers and training courses are being offered on a voluntary basis, which are being well received.
You can find the interview here.
(Image source: Behörden Spiegel/ Klinger)