Bundesarchiv-Stasi-Unterlagen-Archiv Frankfurt (Oder)

The Stasi Records Archive (until June 17, 2021 the Federal Commissioner for the Records of the State Security Service of the former German Democratic Republic –GDR) is responsible for the preservation, management and accessibility of the records of the East German Ministry for State Security (1950 – 1989), its predecessor, the political police K5, and successor, the Office for National Security of the GDR. The Archive‘s holdings also include documents ceded to the Ministry for State Security, colloquially known as Stasi, by the line of activity K1 within the criminal police, as well as East German courts and prosecutors‘ offices. The Stasi Records Archive Frankfurt (Oder) is responsible for the files of the regional units for State Security (Bezirksverwaltung für Staatssicherheit) Cottbus and Frankfurt (Oder).  

The records of the Regional Unit (Bezirksverwaltung) Cottbus including those of the district offices (Kreisdienststellen) Calau, Cottbus, Finsterwalde, Forst, Guben, Herzberg, Hoyerswerda, Jessen, Liebenwerda, Luckau, Lübben, Senftenberg, Spremberg and Weißwasser encompass around 2,910 linear metres of paper files as well as approx. 3,924 photographs, 10 films, 1 video, 357 audio recordings and 4,888 maps. The records of the Regional Unit Frankfurt (Oder) together with those of the district offices (Kreisdienststellen) Angermünde, Bad Freienwalde, Beeskow, Bernau, Eberswalde, Eisenhüttenstadt, Frankfurt (Oder), Fürstenwalde, Schwedt, Seelow and Strausberg comprise around 3.085 linear metres of paper files as well as 7,562 photographs, 21 films, 8 videos, 113 audio recordings and 8,228 maps.  

Access and usage of archival materials is regulated by the Stasi Records Act (Stasi-Unterlagen-Gesetz – StUG).