celebrations of the anniversary are happening all over the city at historic locations with installation. readings light shows and concerts planned until this coming sunday. and former. teamed up with chinese poet. to commemorate the anniversary and the horrors. it's hard to celebrate enough the event that led to german reunification some $200.00 events are going on all this week across the city and one of the places that played a key role in east germany's peaceful revolution 30 years ago is the best 70 church in what used to be communist east berlin and let's go over to my colleague david leavitt's who's standing by there for us. i david tell us what's going on down there and how are people celebrating this historic occasion.

well people have been stopping by they gets a mini church to watch a series of projections that are being projected on to the church behind me these tell the story of the week leading up to the fall of the berlin wall and that is why people are coming here because this church played a huge role in the peaceful revolution in the path toward that peaceful revolution people at this church would come and meet opposition forces were i should say. oppositionists came here to meet and 30 years ago to the evening there was a concert here of beethoven's 3rd symphony where the conductor stood up after the symphony and said the wall has got to go and that is when people took to the streets in an impromptu demonstration now 30 years later tonight there's a concert by the punk rock joy and patti smith who's come here from the united states a person who's built her career on fighting for freedom and she is giving

a concert here to commemorate that concert that happened 30 years ago so tell us just a little bit more about the significance of the church itself through. well it wasn't just that one concert actually in the weeks and months that led up to that concert more and more people gathered in the area right behind me for candlelight vigils to . make aware what was going on that people were being arrested for demonstrating for democracy and this church really played a role in creating a groundswell of support for the freedom movement that led to the fall of the berlin wall so let's take a look at back at what happened 30 years ago. in october $989.00 think f. 70 church in what was then east berlin it became the center of the revolution communist east germany was celebrating its 40th anniversary and there was still rousing

applause for the country's leaders but at the same time the streets were slowly filling up with protesters. on the. east german police and members of the country's notorious intelligence service brutally beat the demonstrators. on this night thousands some of them wounded fled into the safety of the church there were fears that the church would be storm. but the police didn't intervene a new wind was blowing from the east under mikhail gorbachev moscow was no longer willing to back the use of force against demonstrators the protest movement based in the guest them in the church was allowed to continue with candles courage and nonviolent protests these demonstrators paved the way for the peaceful revolution and the fall of the wall.

so david it's very interesting that churches were something of a protected space in the former east germany tell us a little bit more about their contribution in general to the peaceful revolution. right well churches were one of the very few places the opposite oppositionists could meet in east germany and talk about politics talk about any kinds of issues from the environment to gay rights and this church in particular was one of them i talked a little bit earlier to the pastor of this church of bonny and he told me that he believes that the church played a huge role in keeping the revolution peaceful because people would meet in the churches and then they would go out on the streets but 1st they would pray for peace and that played a major role now churches of course had in and of themselves sort of in sort of an opposition to the state the east german state was officially atheists and

that automatically created an opposition and which there was. in which. and which a lot of people felt that they could gather into couldn't speak freely elsewhere let's have a listen to what know what it's a minister said to you earlier yes. he said i myself wasn't afraid. that this was a movement that the state apparatus was not going to quell. we had no guarantee of safety. actually it wasn't a public space and they would have needed a search warrant just. to spite the totalitarian nature of the east german system there were certain aspects of the rule of law that they respected that gave us a bit of security. so now you can visit and see how it. so david obviously think that really struck me one thing go ahead go ahead what struck

you. well one thing that really struck me in talking to bonnie is how even just days before the wall fall people weren't sure what was going to happen they could really feel that something historic was happening that there was a shift taking place but no one knew that just 4 days after that concert that took place here in the church that it was that so what was going to come down and everything was going to change it was such an incredibly emotional event for so many millions of people here in germany have you spoken to anyone there just quickly he's spoken to anyone there about how they experienced it. we haven't actually we can have a listen to what they have to say. i experienced the fall of the war by going to. i've been expelled from germany just a year before so i used the opportunity to visit my friends and parents. i came here today with a friend who grew up just

a 100 meters away from me as the crow flies. we both lived right at the border she was in the west and i was in the east and we probably would never have met if it hadn't been for the peaceful revolution. thanks very much david for bringing us all that background and we'll catch up with you again tomorrow when you'll be at the east side gallery i believe the longest remaining stretch of the berlin wall thanks very much for talking to us this evening. well it was your money is a german singer songwriter and former east germany dissident who was stripped of his citizenship and exiled to x. west germany back in 1976 that was after his very non-conformist he was alarmed the east german authorities on monday night him and performed in berlin with the chinese poet and musician. and that you commemorated both the massacre at tiananmen square also in 1909 and of course the fall of the berlin wall.

november 4th 198906000 is gathered to demonstrate in east berlin he was the largest non state sanctioned demonstration communist east germany would ever see a few days later the berlin wall fell 30 years on we're at the famous ensemble theater to meet one of the regime's harshest critics singer-songwriter voice. today his criticism is directed against present day right wing populists like the alternative for germany or e.f.t. party and its leader alexander go lunde. because of course like many others i was annoyed that this gallant of the a.f.d. actually says in public that the whole nazi period since i was just heard crap. anyone who causes 12 years of. the war was.

not to mention the 6000000 jews and a half a 1000000 gypsies bird crap that's a criminal. in his songs performing here with his wife camilla took the east german communist regime to task on sees reunification and its consequences in a positive light he has no time for people who suggest that the former east germany was colonized. mrs freedom does not kiss mr barbed wire you can't break 2 systems dictatorship and democracy to get in such a way that you say it will take the better from after all it wasn't bad in the day are i believe that the weakest and most imperfect democracy is in

compare a pretty better than the best. chinese author leo you seen here on the left is a friend of life the amount in 2011 he was able to flee to germany after a long prison sentence in china he's updated his poem massacre about the brutal suppression of the chinese democracy movement in 1989 to pay tribute to the current protest movement in hong kong. the curtain down we want to die in freedom. over the past 30 years and china has become a dictator. ship that represents strong competition for the west by miles the people of hong kong the courage and perseverance and determination to fight against dictatorship it could be the beginning of a cold war i cannot say enough that i am a citizen of hong kong things now depend on the west he says he's calling on chancellor angela merkel and germany to put principle before economic interest when

it comes to freedom and democracy. turns a chinese communist party has developed into an incredibly powerful empire they have perfected the dictatorship more than the soviets they used an opium against their own people as in hong kong against those who go to resist opium against foreign countries against their economies and politics 1st they make them dependent make the middle dictate and then they can no longer resist this opium this alliance of interests with china so i don't hear the people in hong kong have clearly already taken the message of the new envoy to heart they know how important it is to get involved and fight for freedom. certainly powerful stuff that brings us to the end of this edition but our coverage of the anniversary events will continue all this week so do be sure to turn tune in

again next time until then all the best from berlin in emotion and remember to take care and bye bye.

climate change. the strain ability. environmental projects. give global affairs biodiversity species conservation exploitation. human rights displacement. of the global and current of local action. global 3030 minutes on d w. he wanted to smash the berlin wall in long before it finally found. the also issued a new york state you know linda byrd is actually better known as the legend of german rock music. let's find out more about this amazing my system.

costs 21. this week on g.w. . bush years after the fall of the berlin wall. no firm or not doable you. gentleman with doubling any time any place. even some video. we have of the brotherhood of pop. songs to sing along to download it is to come from

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