Hans Modrow (born January 27 1928 in Jasenitz, now in Poland) served as one of the last leaders of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) and as of 2003 functions as honorary chairman of the Party of Democratic Socialism.
He served in the German Army during World War II and became a prisoner of war until 1949, when he joined the Socialist Unity Party (SED).
He had a long political career in the GDR, including periods as the First Secretary of the SED in Dresden in 1973 and as a member of the Volkskammer. He held the office of Prime Minister of the GDR from the resignation of Willi Stoph on 13 November 1989 until the free elections in March 1990.
After German Reunification he served as a member of the Bundestag and (currently) as a member of the European Parliament.
In 1993 the German Federal Court found Modrow guilty on three counts of electoral fraud committed in the Dresden municipal elections in May 1989.