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east berlin november the 8th 1989 surveillance cameras operated by the east german secret police the stasi showed suspicious activity right by the wall of the brandenburg gate. a starfleet officer requested information about a tall man asked picked up on the images. you're about whether they were. going off you know them and avoiding what we call. the suspicious mast was being a wreck to judge by an american television broadcaster which had sent its top reporter to. at the same time in the east german ministry of the interior. a couple of the people's police was given a secret mission by his superiors.

he was to write a paper intended to save the country from just after at the last minute but the new trot out of control and change the well. yes. and it was an overcast november day it wasn't raining but it was dull. it helps to talk. i hate november i hate this weather it drags down my mood. i'm good at this it was fortunate our embassy had a soaring pool of 3040 minutes swim gave me enough energy for the rest of the day

i'm not. going to. work. was a carpenter in east berlin for him the 9th of november began like any normal workday but the mood in east germany had deteriorated dramatically over the past few months . to try in your 89 was a year of tension everyone felt the tension increasing the secret code was the candle in the window that we looked where the candles were and there were more and more of them that was telling there were so many in 89 everything really came to a head. in the autumn the situation in east germany escalated rapidly monday demonstrations riots beating rampages on the part of the security forces the regime taught it as it tried to defend itself against its own citizens.

east berlin on the morning of the 9th of november 1989 a camera team from the west set off to document the showdown in the east german capital but the journalists found a city that seemed to sleep there was no sign of change yet. this unique 40th was shot just a few hours before the biggest drama in east germany's history. at the same time in west berlin this medical student didn't yet know he would play a historic role that day. i was just preparing for the final. examination of my day was quite structured i got up early had breakfast and then sat down to study every now and again i listen to the radio and watch t.v. so i wouldn't entirely miss out on what was happening in the world and the. concept

of person was of that person that. on t.v. he'd been watching the dramatic events unfolding in eastern europe. and. the east german authorities were alarmed at those events somebody had to fix the situation. that somebody was gassed lauter a senior official in the ministry of the interior known for his level headed approach. to get water on the 1st of july 989 i was made the head of the central department of passports and registration was i knew there were big problems but people wanted to travel to other countries i knew about id cards and passports but i didn't have much specialist knowledge i had to rely on my staff it quickly became clear that it was mainly political decisions that were needed in this particular try to understand.

that this so large among the day's agenda was travel regulations. your voice of legal. sanctity weeks hospital in east berlin. just a few 100 metres from loves his office he had part fish began his shift in the hospital's carpentry shop. the news of the day didn't mention a word about travel policy carrying reports only of party meetings even though the citizens of the country were trying to leave in droves. to come here. as it were. man went on holiday to hungary he crossed the wall into the west from there another person sold everything he had inherited a large bakery from his father and a house he let the state have everything so long as they let him go. so hopefully.

we knew that this was all my motto so i'm you have to remember all that had gone on before i had spent most of that year on whatever point or another fly off to the dissolution of the soviet empire for a girl or boy and what germany there we had more promotion that we never had before to go back and forth to the east tom brokaw was planning a live report for the us for the afternoon of november the 9th. we had made arrangements to get a satellite feed from the brandenburg gate on the western side for that night we had booked a satellite i made arrangements to see good herschel basi and we have that arranged for white 5 o'clock in the afternoon as i remember. like most party high ups can tell schabowski lived on the part of bureau estates near belin he'd been through some difficult weeks. this for a few months. was it was frightening for us i have to say of course we saw the

television images and that was the impulse for us to bring about a decision to diffuse the situation the visas abroad so enchanted from the communist party chief he had led east germany into a rut schabowski fellow politburo members forced him to step down. but the issue of freedom to travel was still an insoluble problem for the new leader. the 1st step of the government that was created after deposing hunnicutt was to create a travel law with the aim of relaxing the situation dusty's a. schabowski was the only member of the party put it bureau to address the popular protests. each worked to bring about reforms in the system. but the people didn't want to believe him anymore.

since the early morning the western camera team had been watching the events in plans and flee signing 2 districts in east berlin. the journalists asked people about the most important topics of the day the right to travel freely and the policies of the new leadership. they have to resign all of them there's no point they keep on talking about the loss of trust but they've never had a trust. something will change but not what the majority want it won't be enough we have a view of the world even though we've never been able to look at the world for ourselves . at the interior ministry for top experts including to the offices working on the problem of the right to travel. they had to come up with ideas for the politburo the mass exodus was threatening

the country's very existence. the stasi offices presented a draft version of new travel regulations and. it. was shocked by the suggestions. for the spend they had proposed the regulation permitting permanent departure meaning that from the 10th of november anyone would have been allowed to leave the country for good. but they still wouldn't have been allowed to leave and come back leave and just see a bit of the world or stroll through west berlin or visit their relatives. again that meant no freedom of travel just 3 days early allow to have had to defend the government's half hearted stance in the east german media against opponents like greegor geesey lout i became the scapegoat of the nation he didn't want that to

happen again. i said this would be the final straw this would break the camel's back. so he refused to accept the half measure. a largely just question followed and which lauter called for everyone to be given the freedom to travel for the whole maciek you know the officials knew the people of east germany were still fleeing via hungary in czechoslovakia they knew things couldn't stay as they were but they couldn't agree on a solution. all i would tell you after a few kilometers further north was the bornholmer strasse a crossing point between east and west berlin one of the busiest border posts in the divided city lieutenant colonel how he just started work at passport control at 8 am. on the grounds of all the morning almost rosser crossing point was basically the purpose of my life everything happened there my entire professional life was

there i really felt i had a calling to fill a position. for abuse of that movement. the month of november was a normal thursday there wasn't much travel activity around $200.00 west germans came in just under a 1000 from west berlin would stop counting east german citizens. a normal day in divided believe at least that's how it seems. what no one knew was that the working group was in the process of making a momentous decision on travel policy. on their own initiative lauter and the other officers changed the brief given them by the politburo an unprecedented occurrence in the east german state. we saw this is one of our last opportunities to

stabilize the situation in east germany but we didn't want to force the people to leave the state forever they had work they had a home had a car maybe a boat on a lake they would have come back we wouldn't force them to leave forever that was our idea and for most of us saw on t.v. fostering to. that idea completely contradicted the orders from above nonetheless the 4 men opted to issue the much more permissive travel regulations. we simply formulated this decision completely differently we wrote that simple trips and permanent departure were immediately allowed for everyone without the previously necessary checks and approval procedures and. all people would have to do was to request a passport and a visa the idea was to gain time and allow a controlled opening of the borders for christmas. at the same time the west german

chancellor had left the country helmut kohl was in poland on an official visit. we flew to warsaw on an air force plane in the morning and had the standard welcome ceremony. then we had our 1st talks and were put up in a polish government guest house. but fish wasn't especially politically minded but the big question of his country's future was on his mind. as a for travel freedom was a big issue because there were many family connections to west germany and west berlin some weren't allowed to go to their parents' funeral it was all very arbitrary you never knew what answer you'd get it was unpredictable. you know. that

from the cradle. a good ally not that we're the body itself you know this. that was when i dictated the crucial paper to his secretary good eyes to the gallows rising i was dead in. the pot how is it read that private journeys to foreign countries could be applied for without preconditions printed on the $45.00 the song in. the new travel regulations were not to be made public until the next morning that way passports and registration offices would have time to prepare for the onslaught of people. and that's why it was decided that none of this would be made public until 4 o'clock in the morning on the 10th of november nothing would have happened before then one expose your.

lunch break in delhi. but. west berlin medical student benedict ziegler my are headed to the university canteen. but fish was informing himself about the situation in the country all the news was about one topic only the tense congress of the east german communist party central committee the highest party organ. but he wanted to do something new that would create trust that they got in crane's who actually was a day of hanukkah's. that didn't give anyone hope that there would be improvement because the ideology remained nothing changed change could only come about if something old broke to make room for the new year old cup would you like about going it call. in the central committee building top party officials were discussing the future of east germany as always behind closed doors.

just one person wasn't inside the party's new spokesman could touch up asking. voters tradin going for the media i was responsible for dealing with the media i'm choosing my words carefully because the expression guiding and instructing the media had been replaced i was in touch with the media on that day to tell them what could come up in the central committee or. us and. i also acted as their contact with the central committee for responsible alston's and our committee. schabowski set up an international press conference for that evening . a reporter from the west german tabloid bit peter brinkman came especially from hamburg. we had become and i got

a call from the west berlin mayor's office someone said i should come to berlin something was happening to us. it was as i thought it was going to be there i should sit in the front row i put my jacket over my seat and kept checking to make sure it was still live because i really wanted to sit right in front of the microphone i had no idea what was going to happen but everyone was hoping something would happen to get over it or off the . this was perceived. only a few meters away in east germany's interior ministry get half aloud as working group had completed its job of drafting the paper on travel regulations. his part in this package was then brought to the party central committee it's

around noon and it was given to the driver who was told to hand it straight to egg on cranes and that was a difficult situation we had to assume that those who commissioned it namely the political row would read it and check it and say this wasn't what we ordered i was nervous i didn't know what would happen and whether i'd still have my job tomorrow or. more guns on those. at around noon the driver took the paper to the central committee building 1st of all to the politburo at the members were having a cigarette break they waved out as travel regulations through without objections the 1st hurdle had been ever come. in the early afternoon east german leader is going to transmit with west german politician your highness how to talk about the future of in the german relations after the meeting clients went back to the central committee was allowed as a note he altered the agenda therefore as it's not as mr the chairman of the council of ministers has suggested

a regulation which i want to read out now because it will have such an effect that i don't want to pass it without 1st consulting the central committee the following transitional regulations regarding troops and permanent departures will be implemented with immediate effect that it does run off personal trips to other countries can be applied for with out reasons such as family events or the like. of on shots of on commission will be granted at short notice and put travel permits will only be declined in exceptional cases. if you guys back home are with us. whatever we do we won't do it right sides but this is the only solution this allows us to avoid doing everything via 3rd states which isn't good for our international reputation. no one in the room appeared to understand the momentous import of the paper they didn't realize it would allow all

these german citizens to travel that's the only explanation of why the draft was passed without much discussion at the end kinds also said the information should be withheld until the following day. the body type the attached press release regarding the transitional regulations is to be published on the 10th of november. but the one member of the central committee who was absent at that moment was going to shut off ski. villages that i wasn't there i wasn't out that central committee session because it's all. shut off ski didn't return until about half past 5 just before his press conference had been to be there when i returned to the central committee meeting all of these things had already taken place i sat down next to kranz on the discussion continued we spoke quietly and he pushed the nose over to me he told me to take it with me to today's press

conference and sure but then the indian with a good press a quibble and a gone friends failed to mention an important detail to schabowski that it was to be embargoed until the following morning. i didn't know anything about the news embargoed annoyed. and so good to schabowski went to his press conference. is that we are back at the international press center in berlin with a live report a tradition that was started yesterday is to be continued every evening after the end of the day sessions of the central committee of the socialist unity party a representative of this committee will talk to east german and. foreign journalists to answer their questions as you can see huge numbers are resembled here than that in that 8 and uncle op. one of the journalists present was american news anchor tom brokaw. i'm pretty

exhausted it was 45 o'clock i've fallen i'm on a diet so i said is our satellite. capabilities still there and they said yes we're also getting a crane out here to protect our over a hard shot all that time peter brinkman had managed to defend his seat. down while playing for the room was crammed full nobody knew anything nobody had the faintest idea but everyone felt something was up we had to be there for whatever was going to happen today victor. at the same time in warsaw how much code was meeting let fall winter. if we're going to talk with will end soon during this talk he said mr chancellor the events taking place in east germany will lead to german reunification of food for those of us for lens or was convinced this would come about. own room. as the working day near detained in east

berlin the television journalist from the west had managed to get all the way to the government quarter they were observing east german officialdom much were. the people's police knew their job to keep everyone and everything in its place. 6 pm in east berlin. trish and his wife rita had choir practice that night on the program christmas carols. we had in fact we had finished work for the day and were glad it was thursday so we could go and sing in the choir and slowly prepare songs for christmas we had to start those rehearsals in november if not in october already we

thought we would receive we had weekly meetings during which we rehearsed hymns and all of the other things you sing in church we sang at the service on sundays that who took turns on it also really brought to streets. the am. at 6 o'clock on the dot com to shut off opens the press conference. bush jr until he introduced himself as secretary of the central committee. he also introduced his colleague comrade helga lapse and a member of the central committee and head of the teacher's union on forces that

they're going to accept it so you can talk for not a word about the travel regulations only party my language it was all waffle so it went on for half an hour it was dreadfully boring and all the other journalists felt the same thing. you. know most of my isn't the best way of. image of iraq going i was tired it was quite a day and i would care about have writing off a drawing auditors bureaucratic where. the tenet colonel house was just about to have supper in the neighboring canteen. allude to. the television was on in the canteen but nobody was watching all listening and i saw the press conference was being broadcast and i thought i'd listen to what was being said in case there was any news or good news could occur

any day and there weren't that many party press conferences or. people in west berlin could also receive east german television medical students ben it exceeded my i was watching the live broadcast of the press conference. that he supposed he then started reporting on the day's count topics i wasn't really taking him seriously at 1st i just thought he's sitting there saying whatever that sounds up for us. but just a few minutes before the end of the press conference there was an unexpected twist to the form. of city johnson jersey gets its food aid to an italian journalist picardo was invited to ask a question should not strictly not been put on so they cut ricardo ehrman was standing to the left. he'd arrived so if he couldn't get a seat and he will he was 2 meters away from me and only 2 meters to the right of schabowski schabowski. mr schabowski you spoke of mistakes because don't you think

the draft travel bill you presented a few days ago was a big mistake mistake for free to get up to this moment as that moment i remembered i had wanted to talk about the issue of the travel regulations for you these are. sort of the. decisions has been made today the recommendation of the political row has been accepted that the passage of a permanent departure be taken from that draft and come into effect. then he started searching amongst his papers and couldn't at 1st find a note he'd been given by a gone krentz he had this big pile of papers with him which i could see because i was sitting at the front to win as well for as us and as the guy i reached into this pile and was looking for the note i was supposed to read out a colleague came to help me out with this media somebody handed him

a piece of paper from the poet bureau and he took a class as a writer. and i a waiter described us in the new york times as if a martian had arrived on that stage with a message because it seemed to have come from some other reality to be trapped mostly told the journalists they should have been given the statement then he read it. as the bad guys not them i was personally trips to other countries maybe applying for without giving any family all other reason commission will be granted at short notice they're here in west berlin benedictine and my and his flatmate peter were taken aback by what they were seen on television. before it was going to prove to us that as my didn't believe. what i was hearing at 1st i thought it was a way of damping down the demonstrations in east germany give the people a token gesture but i didn't know what to think of it because it is. going to

college is going to majors all of the border crossings between east and west germany. and wolf at this point i called out when i. first response far as i know immediately. but i was shocked immediately i leapt up and left my supper i really wanted to know what this rubbish was all about a. lot was the 4 guys to go purchase. as it's true permanent departures can take place at all of the border crossings into west germany west berlin it's very best if. you. move. back at the east german interior ministry not mr i remember very clearly it was at 6 minutes to 7 the ministry of justice called to suggest the wording and i was able to convince him that our wording made more sense at 3 minutes to 7 i was still on

the phone to him and hadn't realized that 6 minutes to 7 going to have presented the document to the world or the government one even taking a final decision which was. a few minutes later jadhav slouch i left his office in the firm belief that his news of barker was being maintained. that says that. i would fail the truth or give in the meantime the press conference had come to a claim as it is true and that. none of us really knew what to do and nobody drew the real conclusion that this was it was for us to think about it like the american and british reporters were confused they suspected the

interpreters had made an error in translation and i'm biased being schabowski i asked for the english text to be read out in case there was a problem fixed as a day i was living in for the hospitality and what does this mean. the war be opened how would the border police react these were all important questions one analyst can switch theophile. first interviews of all that made an urgent phone call to his superior. you're watching schabowski been talking about how much i think you do business there not always a lot of the real world he said to me you're calling me because of that rubbish i said yes that's exactly why i'm calling he said you know the orders east german citizens are only allowed to leave under the current conditions meaning they need a passport and a proper visa otherwise they have to be turned back. vides it looks like sort of.

the east german leadership heard nothing about any of this because the politburo the ministers and all the top party officials most of it the central committee meeting none of them had seen schabowski press conference. at the same time in warsaw helmut kohl was also in the dark about the events in east berlin the west german chancellor was the guest at a banquet. the room was a box and ensure basket full of paper put it back as walking and left the state i want out ran up stairs with my camera crew were a small room of the ship was completely color court with their eyes you still have a piece of paper he said i do eyes that will read it again somebody took it out put on his glasses read it again and i said that means citizens from these can go out of the war any way that they want to. further forced to leave.

by. transit. through another country it is possible for them to go through the ward some point but it is possible for them to go through the border . i ran downstairs there was a portion of american newspaper correspondents who are friends of mine and i looked at them i said it's true the wall is down. a few minutes later the news programs on both east and west german television reportage what had happened. with nothing on it according to police bureau membership of east german citizens wanting to leave their country no longer have to take the d. to ovata czechoslovakia standing permanent departures can occur by all of the border crossings between east germany and west germany and west berlin. shortly after press conference the western camera crew were filming in

a pub in east berlin here people were drinking a toast to the new regulation. people get yourself all the. way i don't know what to say i used to cry every day now we're all happy it's our it's great what's just happened nobody here was expecting but. they celebrated the unexpected news with beer bubbly and rock'n'roll. the soviet envoy only had about the new regulation from the television. came as a shock. to come go from cuba hawkish people really hadn't known anything about it for we were watching television. it was disappointing and

we were if you like or a bit angry for years books. me to you the tension was rising all the time for no. shtick and the danger that someone would lose their nerve was quite high and you may have been there shooting. the border crossing point a spawn her mashed ass and. full of t.v. if i didn't have to wait long for people to arrive after i'd been there for our own 20 minutes the 1st came and asked if they were allowed out. the officer asked if they had a passport in a reserve part of playing resume no they said but he said we were allowed to leave no. and it was now that the explosive nature of schabowski is noted became clear while its author was sitting

in the theater. ringback and other fatigues i had theater tickets for that evening to see a run into folks by good and the incredible thing about this play which was sold out like so many was that the people couldn't laugh any more because it was such a parody of the actual situation that it was absolutely serious discussion but plants. dish out and later catch fish finish their choir practice and talks back home to cancel are there. those fall. was it was quiet in the streets or there was no excitement most people were watching television western television football match was on and that was a good reason to switch on the t.v.

i was in town as the answer was. a west german television station was broadcasting a match between stuttgart and buy in munich. by now the meeting in the central committee had come to an end. going to shop bosky was also finishing work in his office it had been a long day the man who had announced the new travel regulation left the central committee building to go home to advantage the gated community where the politburo members lived. and. hundreds used to and it's often been does but when i arrived in fond litz i saw that the windows were all dark which meant that the majority of the political row members slept through these eventful hours he's a desert i started increasing numbers of people were making their way to the border crossing at dawn her mushed us and they were convinced they were now allowed to

travel. but border security hadn't received any new instructions the officer tried to tell the crowd he couldn't let them through. but the people could no longer be turned back so easily. the ones i was mental at the moment i did more and more people were arriving they came on foot in cars and by tram they weren't aggressive at this point but they were very firm in their demands on him not to flee. the army. and i. made another worried phone call to his superior come out seguin han asking for instructions to me available through my superior told me on the phone that he'd call the ministry he'd get hold of either the minister or is deputy he said i could listen to the conversation. as it were to me out of use not tired he wanted to show

me that at this point there would be no hope or no rescue from above what kind of a good little. no one in the study ministry wanted to believe what he was telling them. to look at the question came back was i capable of making realistic a valuation is or was i acting out of fear at that point i'd had enough it's a few there are thousands of people out here he said listen to them yourself. when i got the receiver back i could hear the mountain hung up i didn't know what to think and i couldn't understand that they didn't believe me but as this big item . in the western half of berlin the news from east germany was spreading as well. as you wouldn't off towards 9 o'clock we became curious britain

i went to the border crossing on invalid and strasser that was closest one and could be reached relatively easy from charlottenburg. but at that point the 140 kilometer long border around west berlin was still closed every when. people were now arriving at the border crossing up on her mushed in ever increasing numbers. made up his mind trick at the. model i was there i wouldn't usually have been authorized to call the alarm because it wasn't senior enough but i considered it necessary to go on. the entire evening we had to be prepared that people would come and storm the border good.

longest i was called back by colonel seguin home he told me this is what's going to happen all of the people productively showing up at the border loudly demanding to leave may leave to go fight for the policy over us with all the talk of always lies a bunch of all before i was to stamp the photograph in their passport which would allow them to leave but it would prevent them from coming back again and as he always fight is your type. off to do finish with i lived i wasn't allowed to explain this to the people through they were only to be told about this when they tried to reenter the forgotten by then they would be told they were not allowed back in and i was in the community because in other words it was to be a journey with no return. all. the my.

mom. climate change. sustainability and. environmental projects we give globalisation affairs biodiversity species conservation exploitation quality. human rights displacement. of the global and current of local actually on global 3090 minutes on g.w. . to your france dear antonio dear cecilia

this and others and as i'm sitting on a terrace in twilight it's peaceful my 3 grandchildren sleep untroubled as asked out i time when i was relieved france's age germany was split in 2 and remain divided for decades and it was my given one when your mother was born in 1969 the world was already 8 years old and you know my grandchildren were born after the war felt born in a dream unified german. a wonderful time a time of great joy. 3 generations of one family on a journey through recent german history. and it. starts nov 6th on d. w.

. cut. above. this is the day of the news coming to you live from berlin and authorities in delhi declared a public health emergency a small breach is record levels residents of the indian capital says the pollution is unbearable as schools are closed in homs the cities cause a ban from taking to the streets also coming up dens of thousands of protests.