Former E. Germans Speak on Reunification`s 20th Anniversary

The Dong-A Ilbo recently interviewed five people from three families from the former East Germany on the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.

A woman in her 40s who escaped East Germany several months before the wall fell said she still suffers from the trauma of surveillance by the Stasi, the East German secret police. Her story shows that more time is needed before the wall in the minds of the East Germans falls.

A left-wing journalist in his 60s and his daughter said they watched the wall’s fall with a sense of loss. They said they are sensitive to the situation of former East Germans, who are still discriminated against after reunification.

A couple in their 30s who participated in a rally in Leipzig urging reform in East Germany said they were seriously agonizing over how they can develop the former East Germany.