Editing Inner German border (section)

==Escape attempts and victims of the inner German border==
{{further|Escape attempts and victims of the inner German border}}

===Refugee flows and escape attempts===
[[File:Grenzdurchbruche en.png|right|thumb|220px|alt=Schematic diagram of the East German fortifications with annotations on the number of people who were able to pass each fortification line.|Diagram summarising the numbers of people who succeeded in passing each element of the inner German border system, 1974–79]]
Between 1950 and 1988, around four million East Germans migrated to the West; 3.454&nbsp;million left between 1950 and the construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961. After the border was fortified and the Berlin Wall constructed, the number of illegal crossings fell dramatically and continued to fall as the defences were improved over the subsequent decades. However, escapees were never more than a small minority of the total number of emigrants from East Germany. During the 1980s, only about 1% of those who left East Germany did so by escaping across the border. Far more people left the country after being granted official permits, by fleeing through third countries or by being ransomed by the West German government.<ref name="Jarausch-17">[[#Jarausch|Jarausch (1994)]], p. 17.</ref>

The vast majority of refugees were motivated by economic concerns and sought to improve their living conditions and opportunities by migrating to the West. Events such as the crushing of the 1953 uprising, the imposition of collectivisation and East Germany's final economic crisis in the late 1980s prompted surges in the number of escape attempts.<ref name="Escapees-Eichsfeld">"The number of escapees". [[#Grenzmuseum|Grenzmuseum Eichsfeld]] (Border Museum Eichsfeld).</ref>

Attempts to flee across the border were carefully studied and recorded by the GDR authorities to identify possible weak points. These were addressed by strengthening the fortifications in vulnerable areas. At the end of the 1970s a study was carried out by the East German army to review attempted "border breaches" (''Grenzdurchbrüche''). It found that 4,956 people had attempted to escape across the border between 1&nbsp;January 1974 and 30&nbsp;November 1979. Of those, 3,984&nbsp;people (80.4%) were arrested by the ''Volkspolizei'' in the ''Sperrzone'', the outer restricted zone. 205&nbsp;people (4.1%) were caught at the signal fence. Within the inner security zone, the ''Schutzstreifen'', a further 743&nbsp;people (15%) were arrested by the guards. 48&nbsp;people (1%) were stopped&nbsp;– i.e. killed or injured&nbsp;– by landmines and 43&nbsp;people (0.9%) by SM-70 directional mines on the fence. A further 67&nbsp;people (1.35%) were intercepted at the fence (shot and/or arrested). A total of 229&nbsp;people&nbsp;– just 4.6% of attempted escapees, representing less than one in twenty&nbsp;– made it across the fence. Of these, the largest number (129, or 55% of successful escapees) succeeded in making it across the fence in unmined sectors. 89&nbsp;people (39% of escapees) managed to cross both the minefields and the fence, but just 12&nbsp;people (6% of the total) succeeded in getting past the SM-70s booby-trap mines on the fences.<ref>[[#Ritter|Ritter; Lapp (2007)]], p. 72.</ref>

Escape attempts were severely punished by the GDR. From 1953, the regime described the act of escaping as ''[[Republikflucht]]'' (literally "flight from the Republic"), by analogy with the existing military term ''Fahnenflucht'' ("desertion"). A successful escapee was not a ''Flüchtling'' ("refugee") but a ''Republikflüchtiger'' ("Republic deserter"). Those who attempted to escape were called ''Sperrbrecher'' (literally "blockade runners" but more loosely translated as "border violators").<ref name="Escapees-Eichsfeld" /> Those who helped escapees were not ''Fluchthelfer'' ("escape helpers"), the Western term, but ''Menschenhändler'' ("human traffickers").<ref>[[#Detjen|Detjen (2006)]], p. 113.</ref> Such ideologically coloured language enabled the regime to portray border crossers as little better than traitors and criminals.<ref>[[#Nothnagle|Nothnagle (1990)]], p. 31.</ref>

''Republikflucht'' became a crime in 1957, punishable by heavy fines and up to three years' imprisonment. Any act associated with an escape attempt&nbsp;– including helping an escapee&nbsp;– was subject to this legislation. Those caught in the act were often tried for espionage as well and given proportionately harsher sentences.<ref name="Stokes">[[#Stokes|Stokes (2000)]], p. 45.</ref> More than 75,000&nbsp;people&nbsp;– an average of more than seven people a day&nbsp;– were imprisoned for attempting to escape across the border, serving an average of one to two years' imprisonment. Border guards who attempted to escape were treated much more harshly and were on average imprisoned for five years.<ref>[[#Hooper|Hooper (2001-08-07)]].</ref>

===Escape methods===

{{multiple image
| align             = right
| image1            = Escape boot.jpg
| width1            = 210
| alt1              = Close-up view of a boot which has been modified with a hooked overshoe, shown on a section of border fence to demonstrate how it would have been used to climb it.
| caption1          = Boot modified with a hooked overshoe to enable the wearer to climb the fences
| image2            = Isetta marienborn.jpg
| alt2              = Tiny red and white bubble car, viewed from the rear, with a dummy in the rear representing a person being concealed in the car.
| width2            = 240
| caption2          = [[BMW Isetta]] [[bubble car]] used to smuggle several East Germans across the border in the 1960s.
}}

Refugees used a variety of methods to escape across the border. The great majority crossed on foot, though some took more unusual routes. One of the most spectacular was the escape in September 1979 of eight people from two families in a home-made hot-air balloon. Their flight involved an ascent to more than {{convert|2500|m|ft}} before landing near the West German town of [[Naila]].<ref>[[#Prescott|''The Prescott Courier'' (1979-09-17)]].</ref> Other escapees relied more on physical strength and endurance. An escapee in 1987 used meat hooks to scale the fences,<ref>[[#SundayStarNews|''Sunday Star-News'' (1987-08-28)]].</ref> while in 1971 a doctor swam {{convert|45|km|0}} across the [[Baltic Sea]] from Rostock almost to the Danish island of [[Lolland]], before he was picked up by a West German yacht.<ref>[[#UPIDoctor|United Press International (UPI) (1971-08-04)]].</ref> Another escapee used an air mattress to escape across the Baltic in 1987.<ref>[[#Gainesville|The Associated Press (1987-09-03)]].</ref> Mass escapes were rare. One of the few that succeeded took place on 2&nbsp;October 1961, when 53&nbsp;people from the border village of  [[Böseckendorf]]&nbsp;– a quarter of the village's population&nbsp;– escaped ''en masse'', followed by another 13&nbsp;inhabitants in February 1963.<ref>[[#Cramer|Cramer (2008)]], pp. 122–123.</ref> An unusual mass escape occurred in September 1964 when 14&nbsp;East Germans, including eleven children, were smuggled across the border in a refrigerated truck. They were able to escape detection by being concealed under the carcasses of slaughtered pigs being transported to the West.<ref>[[#Times1964|''The Times'' (1964-09-11)]].</ref>

The traffic was not one-way; thousands of people migrated each year from West Germany to the east, motivated by reasons such as marital problems, family estrangement and homesickness.<ref>[[#Spokesman|The Associated Press (1963-07-07)]].</ref> A number of Allied military personnel, including British, French, West German and United States troops, also defected.<ref>[[#TimesTwoSoldiers|''The Times'' (1959-07-11)]].</ref> By the end of the Cold War, as many as 300&nbsp;United States citizens were thought to have defected across the Iron Curtain for a variety of reasons<ref>[[#Walmer|Walmer (1990-02-14)]].</ref>&nbsp;– whether to escape criminal charges, for political reasons or because (as the ''St. Petersburg Times'' put it) "girl-hungry GI's [were tempted] with seductive sirens, who usually desert the love-lorn soldier once he is across the border". The fate of such defectors varied considerably. Some were sent straight to labour camps on charges of espionage. Others committed suicide, while a few were able to find wives and work on the eastern side of the border.<ref>[[#Anderson|Anderson (1964-06-14)]].</ref>

===Order to fire===

{{main|Schießbefehl}}
From 1945 onwards, unauthorised crossers of the inner German border risked being shot by Soviet or East German guards. The use of deadly force was termed the ''Schießbefehl'' ("order to fire" or "command to shoot"). It was formally in force as early as 1948, when regulations concerning the use of firearms on the border were promulgated. A regulation issued to East German police on 27&nbsp;May 1952 stipulated that "failure to obey the orders of the Border Patrol will be met by the use of arms." From the 1960s through to the end of the 1980s, the border guards were given daily verbal orders (''Vergatterung'') to "track down, arrest or annihilate violators." The GDR formally codified its regulations on the use of deadly force in March 1982, when the State Border Law mandated that firearms were to be used as the "maximum measure in the use of force" against individuals who "publicly attempt to break through the state border".<ref name="Firearms-Eichsfeld">"The Use of Firearms at the Border". [[#Grenzmuseum|Grenzmuseum Eichsfeld]] (Border Museum Eichsfeld).</ref> The GDR's leadership explicitly endorsed the use of deadly force. General [[Heinz Hoffmann]], the GDR defence minister, declared in August 1966 that "anyone who does not respect our border will feel the bullet." In 1974, [[Erich Honecker]], as Chairman of the GDR's National Defence Council, ordered: "Firearms are to be ruthlessly used in the event of attempts to break through the border, and the comrades who have successfully used their firearms are to be commended."<ref>[[#Hertle|Hertle (2007)]], pp. 100–101.</ref>

The ''Schießbefehl'' was very controversial in the West and was singled out for criticism by the West Germans. The GDR authorities occasionally suspended the ''Schießbefehl'' on occasions when it would have been politically inconvenient to have to explain dead refugees, such as during a visit to the GDR by the French foreign minister in 1985.<ref name="Firearms-Eichsfeld" /> It was also a problem for many of the East German guards and was the motivating factor behind a number of escapes, when guards facing a crisis of confidence defected because of their unwillingness to shoot fellow citizens.<ref name="Shears, p. 84">[[#Shears|Shears (1970)]], p. 84.</ref>

===Deaths on the border===
{{multiple image
| align    = right
| image1   = Helmut kleinert memorial.jpg
| width1   = 154
| alt1     = A roughly dressed block of granite, about waist-high, the inscription reading "Am 1.8.1963 wurde 150 m von hier HELMUT KLEINERT vor dem Überschreiten der Demarkationslinie eschossen".
| caption1 = West German memorial to Helmut Kleinert, shot dead on the border on 1&nbsp;August 1963. His death was memorialised by the German Federation of Trade Unions.
| image2   = Waldemar estel memorial.jpg
| alt2     = Damaged metal plaque reading "Am 3.9.1956 wurde WALDEMAR ESTEL Getreiter der Grenztruppen der NVA in Ausübung seine Dienstes an der Staatsgrenze von Agenten des Imperialismus ermordet. Sein Tod ist uns Verpflichtung."
| width2   = 150
| caption2 = East German memorial to border guard Waldemar Estel, who was shot on the border on 3&nbsp;September 1956. The GDR blamed "imperialist agents" for his death.
}}
It is still not certain how many people died on the inner German border or who they all were, as the GDR treated such information as a closely guarded secret. But estimates have risen steadily since unification, as evidence has been gathered from East German records. As of 2009, unofficial estimates are up to 1,100&nbsp;people,<ref>[[#DW|Deutsche Welle (2005-08-09)]].</ref> though officially released figures give a lower count for the death toll before and after the Berlin Wall was built.

There were many ways to die on the inner German border. Numerous escapees were shot by the border guards, while others were killed by mines and booby-traps. A substantial number drowned while trying to cross the Baltic and the Elbe river. Not all of those killed on the border were attempting to escape. On 13&nbsp;October 1961, ''Westfälische Rundschau'' journalist [[Kurt Lichtenstein]] was shot on the border near the village of [[Zicherie]] after he attempted to speak with East German farm workers. His death aroused condemnation across the political spectrum in West Germany.<ref>[[#Cramer|Cramer (2008)]], p. 82.</ref> The incident prompted students from [[Braunschweig]] to erect a sign on the border protesting the killing.<ref>[[#Bild|Bild 175-P05-00002-0001]] [Picture 175-P05-00002-0001] [http://www.bild.bundesarchiv.de/archives/barchpic/search/_1256547571/ Bundesarchiv (Germany)]. Last accessed: 26 October 2009.</ref> An Italian truck driver and member of the [[Italian Communist Party]] was shot at a crossing point in August 1976; the GDR government was severely embarrassed and, unusually, offered an apology.<ref>[[#NYTApology|''The New York Times'' (1976-08-07)]].</ref> In one notorious shooting on 1&nbsp;May 1976, a former East German political prisoner, [[SM-70#Michael Gartenschläger|Michael Gartenschläger]], who had fled to the West some years before, was ambushed and killed by a Stasi commando squad on the border near [[Büchen]]. The Stasi reported that he had been "liquidated by security forces of the GDR".<ref>[[#Mielke|Mielke (2002-05-06)]].</ref>

Twenty-five East German border guards died after being shot from the Western side of the border or were killed by resisting escapees or (often accidentally) by their own colleagues.<ref>[[#Baker|Baker (2004)]], p. 29.</ref> The East German government described them as "victims of armed assaults and imperialist provocations against the state border of the GDR"<ref>[[#NeuesDeutschland|''Neues Deutschland'' (1989-08-13/14)]], p. 9.</ref> and alleged that "bandits" in the West took potshots at guards doing their duty&nbsp;– a version of events that was uncorroborated by Western accounts of border incidents.

The two sides commemorated their dead in very different ways. Various mostly unofficial memorials were set up on the western side by people seeking to commemorate victims of the border. West Germans such as Michael Gartenschläger and Kurt Lichtenstein were commemorated with signs and memorials, some of which were supported by the government. The death of East German [[Heinz-Josef Große]] in 1982 was commemorated annually by demonstrations on the Western side of the border.<ref name="Sonntagsreden">[[#Thueringen|Thüringen Journal (2009-09-18)]]</ref> After the policy of ''détente'' was initiated in the 1970s this became politically inconvenient and state support for border memorials largely ceased.

The taboo in East Germany surrounding escapees meant that the great majority of deaths went unpublicised and uncommemorated. However, the deaths of border guards were used for GDR propaganda, which portrayed them as "martyrs". Four stone memorials were erected in East Berlin to mark their deaths.<ref>[[#Ladd1998|Ladd (1998)]], p. 25.</ref> The regime named schools, barracks and other public facilities after the dead guards and used their memorials as places of pilgrimage to signify that (as a slogan put it) "their deaths are our commitment" to maintaining the border. After 1989 the memorials were vandalised, neglected and ultimately removed.<ref>[[#Ladd2004|Ladd (2004)]], p. 107.</ref>