I was reading this article (http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,660128,00.html) about the border guard, Harald Jäger, who was the first to let East Berliners cross through the Berlin Wall.
The opening of the border was announced almost off-handedly in a news conference around 7pm. Quickly hundreds of thousands of East Berliners were at the border wanting to get through. The guards didn't know what to do & their supervisors didn't understand the gravity of the situation.
This part sparked my interest:
The opening of the border was announced almost off-handedly in a news conference around 7pm. Quickly hundreds of thousands of East Berliners were at the border wanting to get through. The guards didn't know what to do & their supervisors didn't understand the gravity of the situation.
This part sparked my interest:
What if he had decided to open fire? How would this have affected the fall of the wall, the end of the cold war & the reunification of Germany?Jäger: I spoke repeatedly to all officers in charge that evening. On the street, but also in my office. They demanded: "Harald, you've got to do something!" I said: "What am I supposed to do?" I wanted to hear what they thought. They stood together in my office and I wanted them to tell me what I should do. "It's up to you, you're the boss," they said. I said: "Should I let the GDR citizens leave? Or should I give the order to open fire?" "For God's sake!" they said. I only mentioned opening fire as a provocation, I wanted to know if they would support me if I allowed the GDR citizens to cross over. It was clear that it would be my responsibility but I wanted to be sure I would have their support. But that wasn't forthcoming. That's how the meeting ended.