Schily Seeks More Clout in Fight on Terror

German Interior Minister Otto Schily said he wants to increase the authority of the Federal Criminal Police (BKA) in the fight against terror, despite criticism from the states. Before the start of the autumn BKA session in Wiesbaden, the Social Democrat politician refuted speculation in the national media that such a move would reduce the authority of the states. BKA President Jörg Ziercke supported the idea, saying his agency needed to be able to act preventively. The opposition CDU-CSU parties, however, criticized the push. The minister made clear that he didn't want to alter anything in the basic policy or overly centralize the agency, which operates on both state and federal levels. But he noted that it was a weakness in the current system that the BKA isn't able to take preventive security measures, and that the constitution needed to be changed to accommodate this.