Today is day 189 of my exile.
Exile 189.
Nineteen eighty-nine.
Europe is in motion. For years, reform policies in the Soviet Union have been changing the political climate of the continent. Glasnost and Perestroika loosen the rigid grip of the postwar order, while many states of the Eastern Bloc are under growing economic and social pressure.
In Poland, negotiations between the government and the opposition lead to partially free elections. In Hungary, the opening of the borders to the West begins. When, in the summer, thousands of East German citizens reach West Germany via Hungary and Austria, it becomes clear that the previous stability of the Eastern Bloc has begun to crack.
Pressure is also growing within East Germany. In Leipzig, Dresden, Berlin, and many other cities, people gather for demonstrations demanding reforms, freedom to travel, and political change. The leadership of East Germany struggles with the situation while discussions about possible reform steps begin at the same time.
In November, the development reaches its most visible moment. After weeks of growing protests and political uncertainty, the border crossings in Berlin open. People from East and West suddenly stand together on the Berlin Wall, a structure that had symbolized the division of Europe for almost three decades.
Meanwhile, the global situation is also changing. In China, the protest in Tiananmen Square ends violently, while in Europe political openings are taking place. At the end of the year, the United States and the Soviet Union meet in Malta to discuss a new relationship between their power blocs.
Exile 189.
Sometimes history changes not through a single decision, but through many steps that eventually make a wall unnecessary.
In 1989, the order of the Cold War begins to falter. Reforms in the East, protests in East Germany, and political openings in Eastern Europe change the situation. In November, the Berlin Wall falls.
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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