What were the efforts of Walter Keim born 1948 in Germany?

Walter Keim (born 25. March 1948) is a German-born civil rights activist and retired professor known for his extensive efforts to promote freedom of information (FOI) and patients' rights across Europe. [1, 2]

His primary contributions include:

Freedom of Information Advocacy

• Legislative Influence in Germany: Keim is credited as a catalyst for Germany's federal Freedom of Information Act (Informationsfreiheitsgesetz or IFG). In 2001, he submitted a petition to the Bundestag that led the President of the Bundestag to formally request the Chancellor to draft the law in 2004. [1]

• Legal Challenges: He has brought multiple cases against Germany to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) and to the UNITED NATIONS HUMAN RIGHTS COMMITTEE, specifically challenging the lack of FOI laws in certain states like Bavaria.

• "Netizen" Activism: He pioneered the use of the internet to archive and publish correspondence with government authorities, creating transparency regarding administrative secrecy. [1, 2, 3, 4]

Patients' Rights and Mental Health

• Ending Forced Medication: Keim is a prominent critic of involuntary psychiatric treatment. He advocates for medication-free treatment options and has published articles in the Journal of the Norwegian Medical Association on the effects of antipsychotics.

• Human Rights Advocacy: He is a member of the European Network of (Ex-)Users and Survivors of Psychiatry (ENUSP) and fights for health services based on informed consent rather than coercion. [1, 2, 4, 5]

Other Civil Rights Efforts

• Press Accountability: He has successfully filed complaints with the German Press Council regarding sensationalist reporting, resulting in official reprimands for certain publications.

• Berufsverbot: He engaged in public campaigns against the re-establishment of "Berufsverbot" (employment bans) in Germany. [6]

Keim spent much of his professional life in Norway as an Associate Professor of Informatics and e-Learning at the Sør-Trøndelag University College (now part of NTNU).