Straftaten gegen die öffentliche Ordnung – Gegen ein Verbot von Action-Computerspielen is a successful German petition launched on June 5, 2009, meant to reverse a government plan to ban violent games from the country. The German government eventually reversed its decision and sided with the gamers.
Contents
Background
There had been a "string of unrest in Germany over violence in video games", which is why the German government had been working on a bill to ban violent games. In June 2009, "the country's 16 interior ministers asked the Bundestag to ban the creation and distribution of games involving violent acts against human or human-like characters. Government criticism of videogames had been growing since a school shooting in March was linked to online-shooter Counter-Strike". This plan drew ire from the German gaming population, which resulted in an e-petition to challenge the German government decision.
The petition itself reads (in an English translation):
Aftermath
The e-petition eventually reached 73,000 hits, prompting a government review. Officials have stated that the German government will focus on "educating citizens about the country's USK game ratings standard", instead of changing the current legislation. The creator of the 73,000-signature petition was actually allowed by the government to speak in front of the country's Committee on Petitions and he "argued that banning violent games would be a misstep, and that further education on games and the media would be a better goal for Germany".
Coverage
Straftaten gegen die öffentliche Ordnung – Gegen ein Verbot von Action-Computerspielen has been covered by major gaming media, such as Joystiq, GamePolitics, Destructoid, 1UP and even mainstream media, such as The Guardian.