Federal Republic of Germany

C

Judiciary

The highest tribunal under the Basic Law is the Bundesverfassungsgericht (Federal Constitutional Court), which sits in Karlsruhe. It is the final interpreter of the Basic Law in all disputes. Six other important national courts are maintained—the Federal Court of Justice, the Federal Administrative Court, the Federal Financial Court, the Federal Labour Court, the Federal Court on Social Affairs, and the Federal Patent Court. Each state has a series of courts headed by an Oberlandsgericht (high state court). The death penalty is forbidden.

D

Local Government

The governments of the states of western Germany have broad powers, including rights to levy taxes, formulate educational and cultural policies, and maintain police. Each state has a popularly elected assembly, which chooses a minister-president or (in Hamburg and Bremen) a first mayor to serve as chief executive. The states are subdivided into counties, municipalities, and communes.

E

Health and Welfare

Life expectancy in Germany in 2008 was 76 years for men and 82 years for women. The infant mortality rate in 2008 was 4 deaths per 1,000 live births. Germany has an advanced, comprehensive social-insurance system, which includes sickness, accident, old-age, disability, and unemployment coverage. The insurance scheme is funded by compulsory contributions by employees and employers plus federal subsidies. In 2006 there were about 112 people for every hospital bed and 291 people for every doctor. Prescription charges based on income were introduced in 1992. In 1994 8.7 per cent of national output was spent on health care.

F

Defence

The West German armed forces, or Bundeswehr, established in 1955, were fully integrated into the forces of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). In 2004 the German army had 191,350 members (conscripts 124,700), the air force (Luftwaffe) had 67,500 members, and the navy had 25,650 members. The international agreements that allowed the reunification of Germany in 1990 linked the gradual withdrawal of Soviet forces from eastern Germany with a pledge by NATO not to station forces in the east; the last of the Soviet troops withdrew in 1994. Men aged 18 to 45 are obliged to serve 9 months of military service.

G

International Organizations

Germany is a member of the United Nations (UN), the European Union (EU), North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the World Trade Organization (WTO), the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the Western European Union (WEU), and the Council of Europe. Germany has been one of the main proponents of closer EU integration, and with France has promoted policies such as European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU). Germany is a signatory of the Schengen Agreement on European border controls.