Today is day 182 of my exile.
Exile 182.
Nineteen eighty-two.
In the Federal Republic, the social-liberal coalition ends after thirteen years. A constructive vote of no confidence brings Helmut Kohl into the chancellorship, backed by the CDU/CSU and the FDP. Economic stagnation, rising unemployment, and the security tensions of the Cold War shape the domestic political climate.
In the GDR, the leadership under Erich Honecker remains firmly in office, yet economic weaknesses become more apparent. Foreign trade with the West and new loans gain importance. Between state stability and social fatigue, a quiet pressure emerges—one that has not yet surfaced openly, but is steadily growing.
Internationally, the confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union intensifies. NATO’s Dual-Track Decision brings the deployment of new intermediate-range missiles closer and triggers widespread protests, especially in West Germany. At the same time, the Falklands War between Great Britain and Argentina shows how regional conflicts rooted in historical claims, power interests, and miscalculations can escalate.
Wars have many fathers and arise from complex constellations of interests, not from a single decision. 1982 also shows how security thinking, economic pressure, and alliance loyalty shape political paths.
Exile 182.
And Germany remains a country between fronts, still divided, yet already in quiet motion.
1982 brings a change of power in the West and economic pressure in the East.
The Cold War intensifies tensions in Europe and beyond.
Germany remains divided, but not unmoved.
Exile Chronicle
All previous (from 130 – earlier entries are on X/Twitter) and ongoing entries of my Exile Chronicle are collected and documented here:
👉 https://marlas.army/exil-chronik/
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