The decision to assume the role of treasurer within the PDS, the successor party to the Socialist Unity Party (SED) in post-reunification Germany, represented the most difficult choice of his career, according to Dietmar Bartsch, a prominent figure within the Left party (Die Linke). In a recent podcast interview with the Funke-Mediengruppe, Bartsch recounted the precarious situation facing the PDS in the immediate aftermath of the fall of the Berlin Wall, describing a party riddled with legal entanglements and desperately seeking individuals to manage its considerable assets.
Bartsch acknowledged the skepticism he faced, admitting friends cautioned him against joining the PDS, viewing it as a “dead horse”. The party was already under intense scrutiny due to the so-called “Putnik scandal”-a brazen attempt by several party officials to illegally funnel funds abroad through fabricated invoices. Bartsch characterized these actions as a desperate and ultimately unsuccessful, effort to “save as much assets as possible” an undertaking he deemed “unacceptable” and deeply damaging to the party’s reputation. He sharply criticized the flawed presumption that foreign intelligence agencies would remain oblivious to such illicit schemes.
However, Bartsch challenged the widely held perception of extensive SED asset flight. He asserted that while attempts at illegal transfers occurred, the overwhelming majority – approximately 99% – of the SED’s wealth was correctly channeled into trustee management and subsequently utilized for the reconstruction of the former East German states, as mandated by law. He further revealed that, together with then-chairman Gregor Gysi, he signed an agreement with the Treuhandanstalt, a privatization agency, stipulating a pledge to repay three times the value of any future discovered assets.
The SED’s holdings were substantial, encompassing a diverse portfolio of real estate, corporate stakes and international investments. Bartsch estimates the party’s assets, valued in DDR Mark at the time of the revolution in 1989, totalled “at least a double-digit billion amount”. While Bartsch’s statements aim to dispel narratives of widespread misappropriation, his admission regarding attempted asset extraction underscores the ongoing ethical complexities and political sensitivities surrounding the legacy of the SED and the challenges of navigating its transition in a reunified Germany. The incident highlights the persistent scrutiny the Left party continues to face concerning its historical ties to the former ruling party of East Germany.