Where are we 30 years after the Berlin Wall fell?

STEVEN GRUZD

Thirty years on, how has the dismantling of the Berlin Wall transformed Germany, Europe and relations with Jews?

Mr Edey was right. The superpower standoff that had dominated world politics since 1945 slowly petered out. Within a year, West Germany swallowed East Germany as they were reunited as a single federal state, inside of the North Atlantic Treaty Alliance. There began a mass exodus of the “refusenik”, Jews from the Soviet Union, to Israel, Europe and the United States. The USSR itself ceased to exist by the end of 1991, as it split into 15 sovereign states. With France, a united Germany became the engine of European integration.

The prospect of the fall of global communism prompted former president FW de Klerk to unban the ANC and release Nelson Mandela, as he hoped to wrong-foot the liberation movement in negotiations for a “new South Africa”. Soviet withdrawal from Africa heralded both democratic transitions and intra-state conflicts. There was hope that freedom would permanently engulf the planet.

I visited Berlin a few weeks ago to attend a conference. Today, there is very little left of the wall that once bisected the city into a capitalist West Berlin and a communist East Berlin. Tourists pose with the few graffiti-covered panels of the wall dotted around the city. Souvenir shops still sell commemorative plaster shards affixed to fridge magnets. The wall’s route is marked by a line across the roads and pavements.

The partition of Berlin mirrored how Germany itself was divided into American, British, French and Soviet zones after World War II. The first three amalgamated to form West Germany, while the Soviet zone transformed into the German Democratic Republic. I was once told that if a country has to use the word “democratic” in its name, democracy is usually in short supply.

The shadow of the Shoah is never far from modern Germany for Jews. A stone’s throw from Berlin’s iconic Brandenburg Gate stands the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe. It is a huge field covered with undulating rows of monolithic concrete blocks, 2 711 in all, completed in 2004. For me, it simultaneously evokes both coffins and tombstones.

Indeed, the day the wall fell, 9 November, was also Kristallnacht in 1938, when thousands of Jewish homes, businesses and places of worship were destroyed across the country. This decimation of property would be replaced by the murder of millions only a few short years later.

I asked Henning Suhr, resident representative of Germany’s Konrad Adenauer Foundation in South Africa, for his thoughts. He said the fall of the wall “is one of the happiest events in German history. That day, millions of people were lying in each other’s arms celebrating the destruction of a shameful monument of separation. Families and friends who had been torn apart could finally reunite. Even now, many Germans get very emotional and float in bliss when remembering 9 November 1989.”

Suhr continued: “By no means does celebrating the fall of the Berlin Wall diminish the importance of the Kristallnacht. On the contrary, both events remind us to fight injustice, human rights abuses, and the separation of people who choose to be together. The reunification of Germany does not mean the resurrection of nationalism. Israel’s right to exist is unwavering, and Germany is dedicated to enhancing Jewish life worldwide, especially on German soil. The government of Germany and the vast majority of Germans reject any kind of anti-semitism. ‘Never again’ remains relevant now and will do so in the future.”

Many Jews from Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union settled in Germany. Its Jewish population was estimated to be 275 000 in 2018, with some 30 000 to 40 000 living in Berlin. The city has also attracted thousands of Israelis discovering their roots, and attracted by the relatively cheap cost of living, the relaxed lifestyle and the city’s vibrant art scene. There is a renaissance of both Chabad and Reform Judaism, catering for different religious choices.

The world changed forever on 9 November, 30 years ago. Today, it faces renewed rivalry among world powers, threats to European integration and the multilateral co-operation that characterised the post-Cold War era. As the US retreats into an “America first” posture, Germany has assumed the mantle of democratic exemplar. It has many lessons to teach about facing and overcoming a difficult history.