German lawyers to protest new surveillance powers in Berlin


Lawyers from all over Germany are scheduled to hold an anti-surveillance demonstration outside Chancellor Angela Merkel's office in Berlin later Saturday, a statement from the capital city's legal chambers said.The protest has been prompted by government plans to reintroduce a bill allowing for the mass storage of data, revelations that Germany's intelligence agency gathered data on behalf of the United States and the second anniversary of whistleblower Edward Snowden's revelations about the US National Security Agency's activities.In addition to a recorded greeting from Snowden, the speakers at the event are expected to include member of parliament and lawyer Hans-Christian Stroebele of the Green Party and the former German data protection commissioner Peter Schaar.A group based in Hamburg calling itself Lawyers Against Total Surveillance organized Saturday's demonstration. They have asked the lawyers to come wearing their legal robes.Police said that the organizers expect 1,000 people to attend.