Editing Inner German border (section)

==Crossing the inner German border==
{{further|Crossing the inner German border}}
[[File:DDR Grenzuebergangstelle 1982.png|right|thumb|200px|alt=Map of East Germany showing crossing points on the western and south-western side. In total, there are ten road crossings, eight rail crossings, and two river or canal crossings.|Crossing points on the inner German border, 1982<ref name="crossings">Based on: Appendix to § 18 of the [[#LSB|Gesetz über die Staatsgrenze der Deutschen Demokratischen Republik (Law on the State Border of the GDR)]] (25 March 1982)</ref>]]
The inner German border was never entirely sealed in the fashion of the [[Korean Demilitarized Zone|border between the two Koreas]] and could be crossed in either direction throughout the Cold War.<ref name="Buchholz-57" /> The post-war agreements on the governance of Berlin specified that the Western Allies were to have access to the city via defined air, road, rail and river corridors. This was mostly respected by the Soviets and East Germans, albeit with periodic interruptions and harassment of travellers. Even during the [[Berlin Blockade]] of 1948, supplies could be brought in by air&nbsp;– the famous [[Berlin Airlift]]. Before and after the Blockade, Western civilian and military trains, road traffic and barges routinely passed through East Germany ''en route'' to Berlin.

The border could be crossed legally only through a limited number of air, road, rail and river routes. Foreigners were able to cross East German territory to or from West Berlin, Denmark, Sweden, Poland and Czechoslovakia. However, they had only limited and very tightly controlled access to the rest of East Germany and faced restrictions on travel, accommodation and expenditure.<ref>[[#Fowle|Fowle (1981-02-08)]].</ref> The process for driving from West Germany to West Berlin through East Germany was tightly controlled. After passing the crossing checkpoint, vehicles had to remain on designated autobahn routes and were not permitted to leave apart from at specified exits. If a vehicle accidentally took the wrong route, it had immediately to return to the highway. If a vehicle was caught outside the permitted route without a reasonable explanation, penalties followed. Inspections caused long delays to traffic at the crossing points.<ref>[[#Shears|Shears (1970)]], p. 131–139, 141.</ref> Westerners found crossing the inner German border to be a disturbing experience; [[Jan Morris]] wrote:

{{blockquote|Travelling from west to east through [the inner German border] was like entering a drab and disturbing dream, peopled by all the ogres of totalitarianism, a half-lit world of shabby resentments, where anything could be done to you, I used to feel, without anybody ever hearing of it, and your every step was dogged by watchful eyes and mechanisms.<ref>[[#Morris|Morris (1997)]], p. 71.</ref>}}

===Crossing points===
{{multiple image
| align    = left
| image1   = Grenzübergangsstelle Marienborn 1 (G. Mach).jpg
| width1   = 240
| alt1     = View of two lines of vehicles passing between two buildings, with four passport control booths visible, under a corrugated metal roof. A long line of vehicles stretches into the distance below towers ringed with searchlights.
| caption1 = Vehicles queuing at the East German passport control at the Marienborn crossing point, December 1989
| image2   = Herleshausen border crossing.jpg
| alt2     = Aerial view of a four-lane motorway crossing green fields, with a small village with a church spire in the distance to the left of the motorway. In the foreground, there is a white roof structure, resting on slim white pillars, across all four lanes of the motorway; to the left, the roof also extends over a slip lane which branches off from the main road and then rejoins it; on the right, just before the roof structure, there is a parking lot with diagonally parked orange and brown lorries.
| width2   = 244
| caption2 = The West German crossing facility at Herleshausen in 1985, looking west along [[Bundesautobahn 4]]
}}

Before 1952, the inner German border could be crossed at almost any point along its length. The fortification of the border resulted in the severing of 32&nbsp;railway lines, three autobahns, 31&nbsp;main roads, eight primary roads, about 60 secondary roads and thousands of lanes and cart tracks.<ref>[[#Shears|Shears (1970)]], p. 18.</ref> The number of crossing points was reduced to three air corridors, three road corridors, two railway lines and two river connections giving transit access to Berlin, plus a handful of additional crossing points for freight traffic.<ref>[[#Rottman|Rottman (2008)]], p. 40.</ref> The situation improved somewhat after the initiation of ''[[détente]]'' in the 1970s. Additional crossings for so-called ''kleine Grenzverkehr''&nbsp;– "[[small border traffic]]", essentially meaning West German day trippers&nbsp;– were opened at various locations along the border. By 1982, there were 19&nbsp;border crossings: six roads, three autobahns, eight railway lines plus the Elbe river and the [[Mittellandkanal]].<ref name="crossings" /> The largest was at Helmstedt-Marienborn on the Hanover–Berlin autobahn, through which 34.6&nbsp;million travellers passed between 1985 and 1989.<ref>[[#Cramer|Cramer (2008)]], p. 94.</ref> Codenamed [[Checkpoint Alpha]], this was the first of three Allied checkpoints on the road to Berlin.<ref>[[#Maguire|Maguire (2009-10-20)]].</ref> The others were [[Checkpoint Bravo]], where the autobahn crossed from East Germany into West Berlin, and most famous of all, [[Checkpoint Charlie]], the only place where non-Germans could cross from West to East Berlin.<ref>[[#TelegraphHits|''The Sunday Telegraph'' (2004-05-30)]].</ref>

It was not possible to simply drive through the gap in the fence that existed at crossing points, as the East Germans installed high-impact vehicle barriers and mobile rolling barriers that could (and did) kill drivers that attempted to ram them.<ref>"Flucht und Ausreise". [[#Gedenkstatte|Gedenkstätte Deutsche Teilung Marienborn]] (Memorial to the division of Germany in Marienborn).</ref> Vehicles were subjected to rigorous checks to uncover fugitives. Inspection pits and mirrors allowed the undersides of vehicles to be scrutinised. Probes were used to investigate the chassis and even the fuel tank, where a fugitive might be concealed, and vehicles could be partially dismantled in on-site garages. At Marienborn there was even a mortuary garage where coffins could be checked to confirm that the occupants really were dead.<ref>Outline map. [[#Gedenkstatte|Gedenkstätte Deutsche Teilung Marienborn]] (Memorial to the division of Germany in Marienborn).</ref> Passengers were checked and often interrogated about their travel plans and reasons for travelling. The system used simple technology and was slow, relying largely on vast card indexes recording travellers' details, but it was effective nonetheless; during the 28&nbsp;years of operation of the Marienborn complex, no successful escapes were recorded.<ref>[[#Cowell|Cowell (1996-09-12)]].</ref>

===Border crossing regulations===

West Germans were able to cross the border relatively freely to visit relatives, but had to go through numerous bureaucratic formalities. East Germans were subjected to far stricter restrictions. It was not until November 1964 that they were allowed to visit the West at all, and even then only pensioners were allowed, as they were believed to be less likely to escape. This gave rise to a joke that only in East Germany did people look forward to old age.<ref>[[#Shears|Shears (1970)]], p. 15.</ref> Younger East Germans were not allowed to travel to the West until 1972, though few did so until the mid-1980s. They had to apply for an exit visa and passport, pay a substantial fee, obtain permission from their employer and undergo an interrogation from the police.<ref>"The formalities to be carried out by citizens of the GDR wishing to enter the Federal Republic." [[#Grenzmuseum|Grenzmuseum Eichsfeld]] (Border Museum Eichsfeld).</ref> The odds were against successful applications, and only approximately 40,000 a year were approved. Refusal was often arbitrary, dependent on the goodwill of local officials.<ref>[[#Childs|Childs (2001)]], p. 29.</ref> Members of the Party elite and cultural ambassadors were frequently given permission to travel, as were essential transport workers. However, they were not permitted to take their families with them.<ref>[[#Bailey|Bailey (1983)]], p. 32.</ref>

Until the late 1980s, ordinary East Germans were only permitted to travel to the West on "urgent family business" such as the marriage, serious illness or death of a close relative. In February 1986, the regime relaxed the definition of "urgent family business", which prompted a massive increase in the number of East German citizens able to travel to the West.<ref name="McCartney">[[#McCartney|McCartney (1988-04-16)]].</ref> The relaxation of the restrictions was reported to have been motivated by a desire on the part of the East German leadership to reduce their citizens' desire to travel and shrink the number applying to emigrate. In practice, however, it had exactly the opposite effect.<ref name="McCartney" />

===Emigrating from East Germany===
[[File:Border crossing, Oebisfelde DDR. Apr 1990.jpg|right|thumb|240px|alt=View of a train stopped at a long railway platform, at the end of which is an arched iron bridge. A grey concrete barracks and East German state emblem are visible on the side of the platform. Several people are standing or walking on the platform and the train's doors stand open.|Crossing the border by rail at Oebisfelde railway station, April 1990]]
There was no formal legal basis under which a citizen could emigrate from East Germany. In 1975, however, East Germany signed up to the [[Helsinki Accords]], a pan-European treaty to improve relations between the countries of Europe.<ref name="McAdams-148">[[#McAdams|McAdams (1985)]], p. 148.</ref> An increasing number of East German citizens sought to use the Accords' provision on freedom of movement to secure exit visas. By the late 1980s over 100,000&nbsp;applications for visas were being submitted annually with around 15,000–25,000&nbsp;being granted.<ref name="Dale-87">[[#Dale|Dale (2005)]], p. 87.</ref><ref>[[#Hertle|Hertle (2007)]], p. 124.</ref>

The GDR's government nonetheless remained opposed to emigration and sought to dissuade would-be émigrés. The process of applying for an exit permit was deliberately made slow, demeaning, frustrating and often fruitless. Applicants were marginalised, demoted or sacked from their jobs, excluded from universities and subjected to social ostracisation.<ref>[[#Dale|Dale (2005)]], pp. 87–88.</ref> They faced the threat of having their children taken into state custody on the grounds that they were unfit to bring up children.<ref>[[#Childs|Childs (2001)]], p. 44.</ref> The law was used to punish those who continued to apply for emigration; over 10,000&nbsp;applicants were arrested by the Stasi between the 1970s and 1989.<ref>[[#Hertle|Hertle (2007)]], pp. 123–124.</ref> A report for the Central Committee's security section noted: "The emigration problem is confronting us with a fundamental problem of the GDR's development. Experience shows that the current repertoire of solutions (improved travel possibilities, expatriation of applicants, etc.) have not brought the desired results, but rather the opposite." The agitation for emigration, the report concluded, "threatens to undermine beliefs in the correctness of the Party's policies."<ref>[[#Dale|Dale (2005)]], p. 89.</ref>

===Ransoms and "humanitarian releases"===

East German citizens could also emigrate through the semi-secret route of being ransomed by the West German government in a process termed ''Freikauf'' (literally the buying of freedom).<ref name="Buckley">[[#Buckley|Buckley (2004)]], p. 104</ref> Between 1964 and 1989, 33,755&nbsp;political prisoners were ransomed. A further 2,087&nbsp;prisoners were released to the West under an amnesty in 1972. Another 215,000&nbsp;people, including 2,000&nbsp;children cut off from their parents, were allowed to leave East Germany to rejoin their families. In exchange, West Germany paid over 3.4 billion DM&nbsp;– nearly $2.3&nbsp;billion at 1990 prices&nbsp;– in goods and hard currency.<ref>[[#Hertle|Hertle (2007)]], p. 117.</ref> Those ransomed were valued on a sliding scale, ranging from around 1,875&nbsp;DM for a worker to around 11,250&nbsp;DM for a doctor. The justification, according to East Germany, was that this was compensation for the money invested by the state in the prisoner's training. For a while, payments were made in kind using goods that were in short supply in East Germany, such as oranges, bananas, coffee and medical drugs. The average prisoner was worth around 4,000&nbsp;DM worth of goods.<ref>[[#Buschschluter|Buschschluter (1981-10-11)]].</ref> The scheme was highly controversial in the West. ''Freikauf'' was denounced by many as [[human trafficking]] but was defended by others as an "act of pure humanitarianism";<ref>[[#Shackley|Shackley; Finney (2005)]], pp. 100–101.</ref> the West German government budgeted money for ''Freikauf'' under the euphemistic heading of "support of special aid measures of an all-German character."<ref name="Buckley" />