The Collapse of a Symbol
When history remembers the fall of the Berlin Wall, one name stands out: Günter Schabowski. Functioning as the foreign secretary of East Germany, Schabowski spoke several words during a press briefing that are still being echoed to this day: On November 9, 1989, the press was told: ‘The border is open.’ “Privately traveling abroad, private exit,“ he said when asked about new traveling regulations. What he did not realize that his spur of the moment comments would create a flood of people asking for their freedom and, in turn, the collapse of the Berlin Wall.
The Context of Division
Since the Second World War, Berlin was a primary site of the Cold War, Cold, and divided. Built in one night in the summer of 1961 the wall divided not only families and friends but an entire city that yearned for connection. This wall remained as a stark an icon of the experiences of East Germans who had their access to such freedom as their counterpart in the west. However, it was unable to choke the spirit of the subjects and the mechanisms of change were gradually germinating.
A Shift in Politics
The pressure from this neighbour’s political elite was intensifying and the political atmosphere in East Germany was changing in the period leading to that famous press conference. The country experienced increasing economic problems and the citizens called for change of fortunes. This steadily growing dissatisfaction by the population reached a climax where thousands of citizens of East Germany protested for political transformation and right to travel.
The East German government, which was growing under pressure, had no other choice but to react. They issued new rules on travelling in an effort to demystify the situation, the travelling restrictions gave citizens the option of applying for a travel pass. These permits, however, were supposed to be granted one by one, and the process of application was very long and thus those permits were just a kind gesture rather than a solution.
In this lesson we are going to examine a famous slip of the tongue, which literally swept Berliners off their feet – Schabowski’s speech in November 1989.
On that fateful evening, Günter Schabowski, member of the Politburo and the speaker of the East Germany government spokesman. The confusion was supposed to have been cleared by the conference aimed at outlining the new travel measures. But no one thought that Schabowski was going to make a colossal blunder.
While at the conference, he received a note conveying the regulations, however, due to inadequate preparation or rather lack of understanding, Schabowski announced that the new travel regulations would commence, “as of now.” Such misinformation proved to be sensational since it whipped emotions of hope and joy among East Germans who wanted to be free.
The People’s Determination
The announcement made by Schabowski triggered a series of raw demonstrations as well as people flooding towards the wall. The Berlin Wall was all of a sudden at the center of a non-violent struggle. People of all walks of life started congregating at the check points stating that the border guards should open the barriers. The world did not close its eyes when this event take place.
Checkpoint Charlie: Symbolic Showdown
Another much noticed crossway between the East and the West Berlin was Checkpoint Charlie, which developed into a symbol of cold war confrontation or anxiety. This is a portrayal of East Germans that wanted to struggle the authority of the border guards and demand what they called their right to cross the border.
People were going raving, holding flags, and asking for their rights to access the “other side”. Overwhelmed by people, the border guards failed to obey the orders that they received in order to stop the flow.
The checkpoints along the Berlin wall began to open one by one. The wall that had been built between people of a particular age for years no longer could hold the power of unity and need for alterations. The physical partitioning of Berlin was disintegrating, and people around the globe stood amazed.
A Historic Moment
The break of barriers sophisticated feelings, triumphant laughs and a restoration of a united Germany was expressed through tears. On the days that the Wall was opened, thousands of East Germans crossed over to the west, giving people a very vivid representation of a united Germany.
Finally, the will and the courage of all the people lead to the dismantling of barriers and.POST-WAR ENVIRONMENT Finally, the will and courage of all people led to the elimination of the barriers and discriminations. The dramatic occasion of the breakdown of the Berlin Wall not only affected the German history but also in the same time turned into a historical image of the spiritual victory of people.
A Legacy of Unity
Break of the Berlin Wall can be the beginning of a new era; Germans have become one nation again and the Cold War has come to a halt. It is a word that seems to make it clear that it is impossible to keep people divided by concrete walls that can be knocked down, and metaphorical walls that are brought down by perseverance and unity.
Today there are pieces of the remains of the Berlin Wall which are symbolic monuments of the past but the museums that are named after the Wall are informative means to tell the subsequent generations about the importance of this event. The Berlin Wall still yields people around the world; people set free from divisions, eyeing the belief of unified strength.
Standing now at this historic moment, one has to recall the man of Günter Schabowski and the impact of his gaffe. So whilst it was the people who were achieving the result of the opening of the Berlin Wall but it was through the words of Schabowski and the collective energy of the ordinary folk of Germany that change was brought about: the change that would end the division that had been set up and allow hope to flourish once again.
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