Located in Berlin, Germany, the Berlin Hohenschönhausen Memorial is the site of the main remand prison for people who were detained by the former East German Ministry of State Security. The memorial's charter specifically entrusts it with the task of researching the history of the Hohenschönhausen prison between 1945 and 1989, supplying information via exhibitions, events and publications, and encouraging critical awareness of the methods and consequences of political persecution and suppression in the communist dictatorship. Since the vast majority of the buildings, equipment and furniture are still intact, the memorial provides a very authentic representation of prison conditions in the GDR.