Prosecutor sacking sparks anger

The sacking of Germany's chief federal prosecutor by the country's justice minister in a row over a treason investigation has sparked mixed reactions across the German political spectrum.

Justice Minister Heiko Maas dismissed Harald Range after Germany's top prosecutor accused the government of interfering in the investigation of two journalists for possible treason. Maas' decision garnered both support and harsh criticism.

Katrin Göring-Eckardt, chairwoman of the parliamentary group of the Greens, called for further clarification from the government, telling the "Passauer Neue Presse" that Maas and Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere should not be able to get off the hook "by using Range as a sacrificial pawn."

"They must now immediately explain who played what role in the attack on press freedom," she said, adding that the quickest way to get to the bottom of the issue would be to hold a special meeting of the Committee on Legal Affairs.

Focus on ministers Maas and de Maiziere

Others in the Green party also demanded further explanation. The deputy chairman of the party's parliamentary faction, Konstantin von Notz, said, "It isn't enough to have Harald Range as a sacrificial pawn. Everything must now be put on the table."

"After Range's sacking, attention should be focused now on ministers Maas and de Maiziere and on the president of the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution."

He added that lawmakers needed access to all relevant documents "in order to be able to clear up the treason scandal and the unacceptable attack on the freedom of the press."

Founder and editor-in-chief of the blog netzpolitik.org, Markus Beckedahl, welcomed Range's dismissal, telling public broadcaster Deutschlandradio, "They made the right decision on Range."

Range's accusation an 'outrageous affront'

Bernd Riexinger, co-chairman of the Left party, said if the government doesn't adequately explain how the affair came to pass, a parliamentary committee of inquiry into the matter should be considered. He went on to criticize Range's accusations as an "outrageous affront" against his political superiors.

Further criticism came from Ralf Stegner, Social Democratic Party (SPD) fraction chairman in the Schleswig-Holstein state parliament, who said: "Range apparently lacks restraint."

Range, however, also received support from some quarters, with the chairman of the NSA investigative committee, Patrick Sensburg, a member of Angela Merkel's Christian Democratic Union party (CDU), telling the "Handelsblatt" newspaper, "Range was right when he defended himself against interference from politics."

Hans-Peter Uhl, a domestic affairs expert in the Christian Social Union party (CSU), a sister party of the CDU, leveled his criticism at Maas telling the "Handelsblatt" newspaper that Maas should have had a better handle on Range's investigation.

"If Mr. Maas now suddenly dismisses the chief federal prosecutor, that is a strange reaction," Uhl said. "I consider it excessive and therefore also wrong."

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, however, said through a spokeswoman on Wednesday that Maas enjoyed her complete support in requesting Range's early retirement.

For its part, the German Journalists Union called on the treason investigation against Beckedahl and Andre Meister to be dropped, rather than only suspended for the time being.

mh/sms (AP, Reuters)