Resumen de In Celebration of its 50th Anniversary the Bundesverfassungsgericht Opens Its Doors for a Bürgerfest on July 7, 2001.
[1] The Bundesverfassungsgericht (Federal Constitutional Court) begins its celebration of its 50th Anniversary this weekend with a Bürgerfest (Citizens' Festival) featuring a number of honored guests and a wide-ranging program on the Court's grounds. The Festival is open to the public, in contrast to the invitation-only, ceremonial Festakt, to be celebrated over two days in September (to coincide with the official 50th Anniversay of the Court's opening on September 28, 1951).
[2] Among those who will be present at the Bürgerfest are the Court's current President (Prof. Dr. Jutta Limbach) and two former Presidents of the Court (Prof. Dr. Roman Herzog [who is also the former Federal President] and Prof. Dr. Ernst Benda). In recognition of the significance the Karlsruhe community has come to have for the Court, Erwin Teufel (Ministerpräsident of the Land Baden-Württemberg [Head of the Government of the Federal State) and Heinz Fenrich (Oberbürgermeister of Karlsruhe [Mayor]) will also be in attendance.
[3] Throughout the day a number of exhibitions will be held on the grounds surrounding the Court, including presentations by the Bundestag (Federal Parliament), the Bundesrat (States' Federal Legislative Chamber) and a number of other federal and local government agencies. The Court's buildings will be open for a number of presentations as well, including: (1) a series of media reports and films concerning the Court, its history and its current President (Building III between 12:00 and 4:15); (2) an art exhibition (Buildings I and III); (3) a presentation of the Court's Internet web-page (Building I); and (4) an explanation of the Court's handling of Verfassungsbeschwerden (Constitutional Complaints), which - going into many thousands per year - constitute the Court's main occupation. Between 12:00 and 4:15 (Building II) a number of the current Justices of the Federal Constitutional Court will sit for open-microphone interviews with the media, focusing on the following themes: (1) The daily life of a Constitutional Court Justice (Justices Broß, Bryde and Mellinghoff); (2) The constitutional implications of developments concerning genetic data (Justices Vice-President Papier, Jaeger and Hassemer); and (3) The Constitutional Court as an engine in marital and family law (Justices Steiner, Osterloh and Hohmann-Dennhardt). The day's program concludes (between 6:00 and 8:00) with a discussion (featuring the current and former Presidents of the Court), cabaret and concert to be broadcast live from a stage in front of the Court.
