Thomas Klein | |
|---|---|
| Member of the German Bundestag | |
| In office October 1990 – December 1990 | |
| Member of theVolkskammer | |
| In office March 1990 – October 1990 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1948-04-14)April 14, 1948 (age 76) Berlin,Germany |
| Political party | The Left United Left |
| Alma mater | Humboldt University of Berlin |
Thomas Klein (born April 14, 1948) is a German civil rights activist, historian, and politician.
Klein was born in Berlin on April 14, 1948. He trained as an electrical mechanic before enrolling atHumboldt University to study mathematics, where he received his doctorate in 1976. Meanwhile, Klein had begun working at the Central Institute for Economic Sciences, part of theAcademy of Sciences of the GDR, in 1973. During the 1970s, Klein began to associate with opposition groups in theGerman Democratic Republic. As a result, he was arrested by theStasi in September 1979, and taken toBerlin-Hohenschönhausen Prison. Klein was convicted of "unlawful contact" ("ungesetzlicher Verbindungsaufnahme") under section 219 of the East German criminal code.[1] During his trial,Gregor Gysi served as his lawyer.[2] He was held in theBautzen II prison until his release in December 1980. Following his release, Klein was banned from working in the sciences, and was assigned to work at astate-owned furniture company.[1]
In 1987, Klein was a founding member of the opposition Gegenstimmen Group. The group brought together leftist opponents of the rulingSocialist Unity Party, and includedMarxists,Titoists,Trotskyites, and members of theChristian left. In a report from 1989, the Stasi counted Klein among the most ardent members of the opposition.[3]
In 1989, Klein was one of the founding members of theUnited Left, and a co-author of the party's "Böhlener Platform".[2][4][5] In the1990 East German election, he was the United Left's lead candidate, and was the only member of the party elected to theVolkskammer.[6] WhenGermany reunited, Klein then became a member of theBundestag until a new federal election was held onDecember 2, 1990.[7] The United Left began to disintegrate following German reunification, and during the 2000s Klein joinedDie Linke.
Following his time as a member of the Bundestag, Klein then spent two years as an employee of the Bundestag. From 1996 to 2009 he worked at theCentre for Contemporary History inPotsdam as a historian specializing in the history of the German Democratic Republic and its opposition movements. In the course of this work, he has authored five books on East German political history.