After the recent attack on Berlin’s Christmas Market last month, German politicians have been scrambling to come up with immediate solutions to prevent future terror threats, including some plausible and some extreme, but a new plan to fit suspected terrorists with electronic monitoring devices might just be the wildest idea being considered.
Justice Minister Heiko Maas is proposing that the 548 suspected terrorists living in Germany should be outfitted with tracking devices strapped to their ankles. Where his plan goes wild though is Mass’ suggestion that this be done without any prior conviction or hard evidence that the suspects are indeed involved with plotting acts of terrorism.
“The use of ankle tags should not be only available for convicted criminals after release from prison, but for those identified as a general threat as well,” Mass announced. “We must do all we can so that those who pose a risk are kept in sight as much as possible, including before a potential conviction.”
Mass’ proposal, which also includes detention centers for those refugees whose country’s refuse to take back, comes as German Chancellor Angela Merkel meets with the country’s senior ministers to formulate increased security reform in the wake of the Berlin attack.