Читать книгу Where in the World is the Berlin Wall?. 170 Sites around the World онлайн

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At the height of a wave of nostalgia for the East (Ostalgie), speculation around a Social Democratic and Socialist coalition in Berlin characterised the 40^th anniversary of the building of the Wall. The PDS (Party of Democratic Socialism), who had received a steady 20 percent of votes during the GDR, prepared themselves to become a political party in the German capital. To generate votes in the western side of the city, a new explanation for building the Wall was deliberated. Apologising to the victims was not on the agenda: “We regret the injustice caused by the SED”¹⁴, their dry statement read.

In the media, comments on the political exploitation of the anniversary stood in the foreground, which, amongst other things, was described as “disgraceful”¹⁵ in a comment by Rolf R. Lautenschläger in the “Tageszeitung” (German newspaper) on 13^th August 2001. For the victims of the SED regime, on the other hand, it was unthinkable that an SPD and PDS coalition could govern the fate of the capital at this point in time, with the latter being the successor of the party – the SED – that stood for injustice, the building of the Wall, arbitrariness, repression, hundreds of thousands of unjust political verdicts and hundreds of deaths at the border and the Wall. An important role was played by the fact that the PDS had not apologized for the border regime and the building of the Wall and the deaths until then. Governing mayor, Klaus Wowereit, also requested that the PDS “apologise to the many victims of the SED dictatorship”.¹⁶ In addition, CDU member, Frank Steffel, explained that “yesterday’s party of riflemen from the Wall should not supply the senators of tomorrow”.¹⁷ The PDS leading candidate, Gregor Gysi, declined the request for an apology, but pointed out that the “inhumane border regiment” could not be justified in any way.¹⁸ For the victims of the SED, the games being played by the coalition were unbearable. They renewed their calls for a dignified memorial in central Berlin and threatened to boycott the upcoming memorial event. When PDS representatives appeared on Bernauer Straße with a wreath during the memorial event, a political prisoner of the GDR, Alexander Bauersfeld, removed it and stamped on it amidst loud protest in front of the memorial Wall. He was arrested by the police for his actions.