Radioactive Trackers used by East Germany

["Sandy Perle" <sandyfl@earthlink.net>]

Radioactive Trackers used by East Germany

BERLIN (AP) March 17 - Former East Germany's secret police, the 
Stasi, used radioactive material for years to track its opponents' 
activities, the office in charge of the Stasi's files said Friday.  

Many here suspect that political opponents of the former 
communist regime fell victim to the technique, dying of rare 
cancers after exposure to radiation.  

Among other methods, the Stasi marked opponents with 
contaminated pins, the Stasi office said. The Stasi secretly slipped 
the pins into opponents' clothing.  

In some cases, Stasi operatives used radioactive material in fluids 
to mark papers and money. They could then trace whether the 
items were stolen or used in contacts with the regime's opponents. 
In addition, the Stasi attached contaminated magnets to vehicles 
to trace where people traveled, the office said.  

There was no indication, however, that radioactivity was used 
against political prisoners, the office said.  

The most prominent suspected victim of the technique was East 
German dissident and writer Rudolf Bahro, who died of leukemia. 
The office said his manuscripts were apparently soaked with a 
radioactive liquid to trace how widely they were distributed.  

Joachim Gauck, who heads the office, said prosecutors are 
investigating further to determine if criminal charges should be  
filed against former Stasi officers involved in the program.

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Sandy Perle					Tel:(714) 545-0100 / (800) 548-5100   				    	
Director, Technical				Extension 2306 				     	
ICN Worldwide Dosimetry Division		Fax:(714) 668-3149 	                   		    
ICN Biomedicals, Inc.				E-Mail: sandyfl@earthlink.net 				                           
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