Thirty years ago today, thousands of people gathered in Leipzig to demon­strate peacefully for democracy and freedom. The Commission on the 30th Anniversary of the Peaceful Revolution and German Reunification is com­memorating this event by inviting citizens to record their personal experi­ences, associations and thoughts regarding the end of the East German re­gime in a short video and uploading it to the website unsere­geschichte.bund.de as a contribution to “Germany’s longest conversation”. This conversation will culminate in numerous events on 9 November 2019, 30 years to the day since the border between East and West Berlin was opened. Political figures, representatives of civil society, eyewitnesses and celebrities will also share their thoughts on the end of the German Demo­cratic Republic.

Matthias Platzek, former Minister-President of the state of Brandenburg and chairman of the Commission described the campaign: "With “Germany’s longest conversation”, we commemorate all those who, with their hope, courage and energy, helped to bring down the Berlin Wall. Their com­mitment and individual biographies should, however, also remind us that even three decades later we need to strengthen cohesion and interaction between East and West."

Speaking about the commemoration, Federal Minister of the Interior Horst Seehofer said: "A series of conversations that will take place along the former border between East and West Germany will give a voice also to those who fought in the countryside for German unification. The history of our peaceful revolution is the shared history of everyone in Germany and Europe."

On 9 November 2019, 30 places along the route of the former inner-German border, from Bavaria in the south to Schleswig-Holstein in the north, will be linked in a media dialogue and via livestream on unsere­geschichte.bund.de.  On the anniversary evening, local and national repre­sentatives from the world of politics, civil society, industry and culture will talk with citizens about the fall of the Wall and what it meant to them, the changes, joys and challenges that came with it. In addition, eyewitnesses will share their personal stories related to the fall of the Wall.

Start and end of live transmission defined by historic events

The moderated discussions will alternate on the livestream with coverage of the official ceremony at the Brandenburg Gate, which takes place at the same time. Two historic moments on 9 November 1989 will mark the be­ginning and end of the “longest conversation”: the unintentional an­nouncement at 18.53 by GDR spokesman Günter Schabowski that East Germans were free to travel abroad and the opening of the border at Bornholmer Straße/Böse Brücke in Berlin at 23:30.

The Federal Government’s master plan for the anniversary:

The format under the heading “Our history makes our future” is based on the Commission’s recommendations and is part of the Federal Govern­ment’s activities in the year that marks the anniversary of the fall of the Wall.

The Federal Government wants to commemorate this anniversary as one that brings together all of Germany while remembering that German unifi­cation is still a work in progress. The anniversary activities are intended to promote mutual understanding for the achievements that brought about German reunification and the integration of East and West.

The Federal Government set up the Commission on the 30th Anniversary of the Peaceful Revolution and German Reunification to arrange the pro­gramme for the festivities. The Commission is composed of 22 members from the world of politics, industry, the arts and culture and civil society. It is chaired by Mr Platzeck and co-chaired by Christian Hirte, Parliamentary State Secretary at the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy. The Commission is supported by the Office for the 30th Anniversary of the Peaceful Revolution and German Reunification at the Federal Ministry of the Interior, Building and Community.  The office can be contacted at GS30Jahre@bmi.bund.de

For more information on the Commission, the master plan and the events scheduled for the anniversary year, please visit: www.deutschland-ist-eins-vieles.de.

More information on the events scheduled for 9 November and a tutorial on how to produce your own personal video can be found at: http://unseregeschichte.bund.de