Germans remember Berlin Wall's fall 15 years ago; adds Checkpoint Charlie
(9 Nov 2004) File - 9 November 1989 1. Various Berlin Wall being breached, with music overlaid November 9, 2004 2. Wide shot slabs of the Berlin Wall 3. Various remaining sections of the preserved Berlin Wall 4. Various memorials to victims killed trying to cross the Berlin Wall 5. Various preserved section of Berlin Wall 6. SOUNDBITE (German) Voxpop man "That night, some young people wanted to go to the west. I decided to join in. We drove over the border in a "Trabi." It was a unique experience." 7. SOUNDBITE (German) Voxpop woman "I was in front of the television - it was as wet as today. I couldn't believe it. Only one day earlier nobody could have predicted it." 8. SOUNDBITE (German) Voxpop, couple Man: "I think it is wonderful, but the people from the former east shouldn't complain so much. They should be happy to be reunited with us. Nevertheless, I'm not part of those 20 per cent of people who want the wall back." Woman: "I think people in the west should be more tolerant. You can't only wish from one side." 9. Preserved section of the Berlin Wall File - 9 November 1989 10. Various East German police at Brandenburg Gate section of wall, with music overlaid November 9, 2004 11. Wide shot Brandenburg Gate 12. Tilt down on panel showing the history of the Brandenburg Gate File - 9 November 1989 13. Various Berlin Wall being breached, with music overlaid STORYLINE Germany marked a subdued 15th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall on Tuesday, weighed down by high unemployment in the formerly communist east and a sense that in people's hearts the nation hasn't yet fully reunited. No big celebrations, parades or fireworks were planned to commemorate November 9, 1989 - the day East Germany's communist regime opened the wall and set off national euphoria that peaked with German reunification 11 months later. Official ceremonies planned on Tuesday include a trip by President Horst Koehler to the former east-west border. Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder issued a statement on Monday praising east Germans for overthrowing communist rule peacefully. As time has passed, however, Germans have focused on the staggering cost of rebuilding the east, not the peaceful revolution that toppled the Wall and the Stalinist rulers who had built it 28 years before. The east's jobless rate - 17.5 per cent - is more than twice as high as in the West. The disappointment shows in elections, when about one in five east Germans regularly votes for the successor party to the communists. The east's economic problems - and up to 1.5 trillion euros (US$1.9 trillion) in government subsidies to the region - have fuelled resentment on both sides. More than 1,000 East Germans were killed during the Cold War while trying to slip through the heavily fortified border to West Germany or trying to get out through other communist countries such as Poland or Hungary. About 230 died at the Wall, a 155-kilometre (97-mile) reinforced concrete barrier that ran through the centre of the capital and around then-West Berlin. Many were killed by East German soldiers following shoot-to-kill orders. Though only very few pieces remain standing, the Wall and several museums dedicated to it remain tourist attractions. To help keep memories of the Wall's victims alive, German lawmakers have proposed building a new, centrally located memorial at the Brandenburg Gate. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter: / ap_archive Facebook: / aparchives Instagram: / apnews You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...
