East Germans 20 Years after Fall of Berlin Wall

Some Easterners Say They Have Not Benefited from Reunification

Jul 26, 2009

According to a new study, at least 23 percent of former East Germans say they consider themselves "losers" since the reunification of East and West German in 1989.

A study conducted by the Social Studies Research Institute of Berlin-Brandenburg and released on July 20, 2009, shows some stark differences among the views of citizens from the former German Democratic Republic, the communist-ruled East Germany.

The study, Twenty Years of Peaceful Revolution 1989 to 2009--The Views of Citizens of the New Federal States, was commissioned by the German organization Volkssolidaritaet. This year marks the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.

Brief History of East and West Germany

West Germany (later to be called the Federal Republic of Germany) and East Germany (known as the Germany Democratic Republic) were officially split after the end of World War II. The borders between the two lands were sealed in 1952, and the Berlin Wall was constructed by the East German government in 1961, further preventing East Germans from crossing the border into West Germany. The wall was opened in November 1989, after the collapse of the East German communist government. East and West Germany were formally reunited as one country in October 1990.

Survey Background

The study was conducted based on a survey of 1,900 citizens of the former East Germany. It focused on citizens' assessment of their standard of living and social freedoms since reunification. A similar study was conducted a decade ago--marking the 10th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall--and the new study also compares its results to those of the 1999 one.

Survey questions centered on the areas of consumption, housing, travel and freedom.

Levels of Economic Satisfaction Mixed

Some 38 percent of East Germans responded that they have benefited from development in the former East German states since 1989, and a further 30 percent see both gains and losses from the results of reunification. Of the remaining respondents, 23 percent believe they have "lost" since the two countries were unified.

Levels of satisfaction with the economy, however, appear to be falling. Just 32 percent of Easterners say their economic situation is good, according to the study. That same number was 47 percent in the 1999 study. More than half of the respondents believe their economic situation will be worse 5 years from now.

According to Dr. Gunnar Winkler, the president of Volkssolidaritaet, the continued policy of social reforms and the associated cuts that have affected citizens' livelihoods are to blame for the decrease in happiness, hope and expectations since 2000.

For this reason, says Winkler, many East Germans do not yet view the reunification as complete. "Many people [from the former East] lack the belief that they can achieve equal living conditions. Only every fifth East German (19 percent) see no or little difference between the East and the West," says Winkler.

Young East Germans were more likely to be satisfied with the reforms--27 percent responded positively--as were university-educated respondents (22 percent), and higher-income earners (32 percent).

The Role of Democracy

Democracy also plays an important role for most respondents, with 67 percent rating democracy as important or very important. Only 11 percent, however, are satisfied with the existing level of democracy, and even less indicated they were happy with their level of political influence.

Winkler explains that the majority of East Germans feel that they have not yet been sufficiently integrated as citizens in the new Germany.

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