At all levels of society, party, and state in the GDR, former National Socialists were represented. The author Olaf Kappel first uncovered this in 1981 with the initial edition of this book. State Security Minister Erich Mielke personally declared him an enemy of the state and sought to eliminate him through a special unit. However, the activities of former members of the NSDAP in the GDR were by no means over. Until the reunification, they continued to rise in power. They held positions in the SED Central Committee, the GDR Council of Ministers, the People's Chamber, schools and universities, the army, the police, as well as in the editorial offices of newspapers, radio, and television, and in the state-owned economy. Some of these ex-Nazis preserved their positions and influence in 1989/90 by joining the PDS, and to this day, these individuals are represented in the Elders' Council of the party Die Linke.