Who. Would not and my the government and so good evening ladies and gentlemen to our news broadcast election sunday in the german democratic republic the citizens voted in communal elections. And other major figures in the party and government went to the polls who voter turnout was. For. The communal elections of one thousand nine hundred nine. As usual east German Secret Police that. Anyone voting for the approved list of candidates had to fold their ballot in the box. Casting an Opposition Vote had to go into the polling booth in full view of the. It was a very effective mechanism of fear and control for years this practice helped the regime ensure that ninety nine percent of the vote went to Party Approved candidates. A widespread form of resistance was people refusing to vote. Sunday in the republic. A new report from. Seven point four percent of eligible voters had cast their votes. Ninety three point two percent. Ninety seven percent. Ninety six point two percent effort and i dont mind point two percent. In the district of alone our staff visited more than one thousand people who are declared their intent to boycott the election. Some who wish to leave the country want to promise that they would be permitted to leave if they remained silent until election day. Another group was relocated before election day third group we can take back onto the proper course im on. Course. As you have your black and white comrade mr. Please continue. The nine thousand six hundred sixty eight i dont see refusal of four thousand five hundred thirty were withdrawn so we get so. Good were comrades i see. Its not these busybodies you can count all they want so thats the way it should be comrades thank you. They wont find anything in the polling stations anyway. And the polls commerce minister there will be no deviations theyve got a proper count. And where is there not a proper. Crites of the district a municipal election boards they prepared the votes in advance with the desired results. As for you saying i told you loud and clear no tampering we dont need that its just who cares if we only get ninety five percent of the people have their say then peace and order will be restored. I agree i only just found out myself but the orders came from the top results must not be worse than last time when us but its not just us. Its rubbish and were left to deal with it once not jewish. Given the head of the election commission. Mr. Already said there are people in place to watch the ballot because theyre not stupid somebody does now weve got another wretched campaign to deal. With as the comrade krantz is on his way to the studio to report the results. I told him to come to me first what is he running a socialist to use group. Of citizens of the german democratic republic dear friends and comrades. He called on the communal elections in the fortieth year of our workers and farmer state yielded an impressive result for the candidates from the National Front of the german democratic republic on deutschen the makati from up oblique for the election proposals to the german democratic republic. Will twelve million one hundred eighty two thousand and fifty valid votes were cast. Thats ninety eight point eight five percent didnt. Come off and lets end. The show i would just like to know where we went wrong. Shot if we fail. Most of the enemy. Of the system was it us. We were so full of hope going to start. In one thousand nine hundred five arish milka return to berlin which had been virtually destroyed in the war after fourteen years in exile he was full of hope for a new start. Had fought in the International Brigade in the spanish civil war he went underground in belgium and france during the second world war. In one thousand nine hundred forty five his stepmother and one brother were still living in their berlin apartment his father had died. Both sisters were married and no longer lived at home. For milkha the end of the war represented a chance for a new germany in line with his communist ideals. Milka gravitated to the soviet zone of occupation thanks to his communist Party Connections he obtained a post in the Peoples Police and began rising in the ranks of the intelligence service. He sought contact with powerful political figures of the day will come peek braced. And nikita khrushchev. These were heady days where he finally received the recognition he had been longing for. Finance with a view to all Violent Crimes serve the party served are just cause and toil and true to our soviet model the magnificent chica. All for the good of the people. And now. I notice when i have to make an effort about the Eleventh Party Congress has launched new programs and given us a fresh direction we have to live up to that and so do you so first of all for my part i know that id like to wish each and every one of you all the best and i hope youll remain a good and steadfast collective and that no one will abandon this. Because were going to get rid of. The study it is a good thing isnt it if we put all the criminals in gangsters behind bars and do our part to keep peace its easier to arresting the criminals will benefit the socialist cause but its not optimal and sure prosperity and happiness for our children and our families is that not worth fighting for. In this Party Meeting must conclude with a firm promise that we will pay heed to criticism that we will remedy all the shortcomings. I mean that we will improve our work not all in service of the socialist cause. Of some of them are they just go ahead and shoot me right now sponsors and this was my piece. Let me go back to my god for which. Im tired. Thank you mr milken of the doctors already here. In ma good morning mr me ok. She has these here today. Is for stupid. Haralds. You tricked me. I thought i was here go back home keep my wife a hog instead their property back here. She did what she did. Talk. To im sorry to disappoint you she i just want to continue our conversation we already discussed everything. I want to say gertrude now mike we agreed. And see tell me more about your wife what kind of person is she. The im told that she. Saw you marge. For two three years younger or older to three years older. Who took a good woman were good summer at. Her truck. Milk i married the seamstress care trick miller two years his junior under similar eighteenth one nine hundred forty eight shortly after the birth of their son frank. Was a faithful husband. Was always content to fade into the background. So i do. Have to say i was always very impressed by his wife as a person she once said. Party leaders live through the schools or the big house theres too much work here i have my small apartment and yes yes well he did. Mention that. She didnt act like some kind of a prima donna forced to live in government subsidized prefab workers housing. If thats how she liked it there. She never complained or said she thought she deserved better. Than the us she never would which is. The milk of family avoided the limelight the west German Intelligence Service knew little more than banalities. If you can see how like air fresheners appears confident but very reserved in his dealings with the sales staff of the Central Department store he is aloof sometimes arrogant that he and his wife gives off an air of rural rectitude and his very modest and not assuming that. Their milk is doing ordinary amount of shopping and are often accompanied by an eighteen year old son who was very shy and anxious the sales staff suspect that the son suffers from a nervous disorder. A contest. Work always took precedence over family life for him a retreat into the private sphere was unthinkable the he believed himself irreplaceable. In east germany the courts often worked hand in hand with the state Security Apparatus soon after the establishment of east germany he decided to burnish his reputation by launching a series of soviet style show trials interrogated the victims himself. One was a communist of long standing. With her student accused of terrorism and espionage entirely trumped up charges. As he still could enjoy explaining to me all sorts of despicable methods to liquidate people in order to make me comply and. He spoke very openly about it all. But he believed that i would never again be free and would never again see the light of day. For five months i was kept in what was called the water so the fence would have no windows or furniture of them the floor was covered in two centimeters of water. Then i was locked in a cell so its not much bigger than a phone book or a big and strong ventilator was an operation day and night. During interrogation milker said to me youre a political person you know guns you know that we need a big trial which will help educate the party in the masses and calls and puts us in this trial you will be our main defendant in decent court says. He. And the clock is lighter. Because it has some additional speed in the one nine hundred fifty s. The germans were the best students of the k. G. B. The favorite students when it came to maintaining control over their own population for the stasi was much tougher than the k. G. B. And could be a bit. Darker in this box. Seem to your children than met mr me. But i can give you an anti depressant if you want but for rubbish and some what i need is this clear of whats happening here. Enemies savoring his victory and im getting my comeuppance course. Since we are not in the soviet union. There are no show trials here but really. Theres something which i like misi. I dont have any other options any more of what you do whatever you write. About the state of my health the verdict of my bird life is a done deal a soft spot to solve. It we havent been tried yet and the court still needs to reach a verdict. But history has most likely judged you as and that probably is a done deal and you mr milkha are responsible for it. When it emerged that this does he had suppressed evidence of fraud in the communal elections activists began taking to the streets. Both in. The mood in the country began to tip. At first the demonstrations through only a handful of courageous activists. By the fall the demonstrations had grown larger and spread to other cities. The police and the stasi were losing control. The demands made by east german citizens grew ever louder. By one nine hundred eighty eight the cia had already recognized that east germany was close to the Tipping Point as noted in the Central Intelligence bulletin if activists expand their appeals to Economic Issues their protests probably would require a mass following. Impose a one hundred thousand people marched to the lights agreeing past the main Railway Station to the consul meant Department Store and. Troubling bring. All these gangsters its to noon there were two thousand protesters tried to return to the city center for the first time special police units were deployed with dogs and special equipment. Sometimes discipline backfires the mall were trying down the more people come out of. The crack down harder research over the last District Administration is no longer in control of the clashes. The hostile and negative forces will be so overwhelming theyll be unstoppable what then. What about the fortieth anniversary of the republics founding. Is this is this going to be another june seventeenth uprising. Commerce minister not on the anniversary thats what were here for. But you say. Heard all these demands before. Three democracy reforms free election and all that claptrap its the language of the class enemy comrades. For east german state security and for me the uprising of june seventeenth one thousand nine hundred fifty three remained a traumatic memory. The first east german general election held in one nine hundred fifty was also not a free election. That was also one of the reasons for the Popular Uprising of nine hundred fifty three. Factory workers declare their solidarity with the workers of berlin and we demand accountability for the shots that have been fired and the victims of berlin and other cities we demand free elections with a secret ballot throughout germany. In one nine hundred fifty three. State secretary for the ministry of state security he was caught off guard by the force of the protests. The east german state would have collapsed had the soviet Occupation Forces not proclaimed a state of emergency. That such a situation could never be allowed to repeat itself. You have two minutes. If you can. Lets look and i do feel. Personal request. Knows what lies ahead of us these are Turbulent Times again its push comes to shove and we need the help of our friends. Can we still rely on the soviet union. That says if youre sick of course. Those soviet union will never abandon its old comrades in arms fire. But i meant more in the sense of nine hundred fifty three years the situation truly gets out of hand if it becomes a genuine emergency it will be. The glorious soviet army behind us citizens for thats a very tricky question at a. Yes its a thing these days along. We dont interfere as actively anymore. Because its going to have plenty emergency. Room especially with your Training School and your pretty of experience open lets give you a little bit of. In february one thousand nine hundred fifty the ministry of state security had one thousand one hundred full time employees. By late one nine hundred eighty nine it had ninety one thousand that worked out to one does the worker for every one hundred eighty east german citizens. This shift is evidence of milk as priority after he took over the helm of the ministry in one thousand nine hundred fifty seven he moved from force and opened suppression of dissent to more subtle forms of surveillance. Through intimidation and preventive measures aimed to nip any dissent in the bud. Operative experience has shown us that we must identify the true enemy the organizers and those who inspire our enemies crush them and then the small fry as we sometimes call them quickly get fed up remember this in your lives and in your political operational work always direct your strike where it will be most effective. The stasi are an obvious because in this in the stasi files i saw that over a hundred stasi agents took part in the plan to forcibly transport me from my home in east germany to west germany i think. Because in all i saw that himself wrote on the plan for my deportation secure detention signature. Song that made me think he have no heart at all all this is this man not have a family and thats the kind of i mean does he know whats happening to me because he would guess what what was thinking when he sat at his desk and signed off on that order up to touch the top. And you can ask me whatever you want i dont done. Well thats entirely your choice of the child i have no idea whats in here. My memory is excellent. But ill take it all to the grave no ammunition for the class anime that. Theres a how do i even know if youre a real doctor. So let me see nato hired you to spy on me. Are you serious maybe a spy. Mr neal because i can see that you have a hard time trusting anyone can you just cant can you. Never heard this from mr tom he was traumatized by suspicion he couldnt even trust himself it was pathological because thats the catch twenty two you cant have influence without power but all power carries the seed of evil with him it. Will start in the bushes but that stalin had the same mentality the mentality of a person who worked for a totalitarian intelligence service. For milkha the entire world was divided into friends enemy as and traitors. In the case of his opponent his opponent was and would always remain an enemy. But he would find his enemy but in the end he would respect him to who was right but the traitor that was the most harmful and dangerous person what he truly hated in the board and theyve. Been here fighting you are not immune to the possibility that a villain might be among us. Edition if i ever find a villain in the next day so quick and simple things about it once its part of our fundamental principle we must know everything we can not miss a thing its nice for you. To maintain control milka set up a Broad Network of informants around one hundred seventy three thousand unofficial collaborators spied on their fellow citizens and provided information this does he used to make their arrests by october one thousand nine hundred nine however east germans had become so unhappy with the political and Economic Situation that milk was enormous surveillance apparatus had become increasingly irrelevant. The substance is explosive and its never going to see. Give us a convert minister the enemy plans to humiliate the republic and its fortieth anniversary. Turn our comrades weve been preparing this for forty years are we not the party sealed in the sword yes we are comrades you know sniff the class enemy provokes us we will strike back with vigor. Let me rely on your loyalty and discipline on behalf of the socialist online comrades me those are such i guess the spotlight do not see the world as it is up about its like he was a terrible leader he said his know it all attitude has been boastful coarseness the loud blather and bluster just an awful guy and it was an Excellent Way to hide the fact that he was out of his depth perfect that sometimes people keep getting promoted tomba higher and higher positions because theyre completely incapable of doing any actual work. On. The manas of the republic in its own way a symbol of forty successful he is for the good of the people because official foreign guests and deserving workers have been invited by a. B. C. To this reception. We received information from an informant at about five twenty five pm a larger group of skinheads was in the subway line headed towards alexanderplatz. Director of task force here weve got about five hundred to a thousand people at alexanderplatz singing and shouting heading for the palace of the republic. Understood. More information. Yeah any news sun is a new phase in the class struggle and if we dont take charge itll get out of hand with the toilet. Commerce minister most were just young drunken looking for a fight stuck a couple. Of days we settle down do you want to contradict your minister or what these gangsters were within a few hundred yards of the palace of the republic but what if they got to the border than your oh nothing much diligence so we must update our rest lists camp plans regulations plans for the guards. And from now on all units must be fully operational and armed at all times talk about calls on the stars evaluation information groups and council on instructions to the departments comrades. X. Is dawning thats how it is but you know swedish comrade minister with all due respect to you you would have to arrest nearly fourteen thousand subversive elements nation one of. The sky if this gets out well be adding fuel to the fire for you so what. Weve managed plenty of other tricky situations remember the antifascist protective barrier is we did that in one day and its Still Standing thats the spirit. So i see. The construction of the berlin wall began on august thirteenth one thousand nine hundred sixty one. It was supervised by Erich Honecker who was then a leading member of the east german public bureau. During the building project dubbed operation rose arish milka and his Security Service were tasked with nipping any protests in the bud. But there werent any. The entire world was caught by surprise. The. U. S. Attorney general Robert Kennedy paid a visit to the berlin wall. Prominently displayed was a notice calling for eric schmidt because arrest in east germany milka had risen in the political ranks in the west he was still being sought for the murder of two policeman. Collars on i cant get this to work because because you have in the general secretary a moment because a general secretary is not here today or tomorrow comrade minister. Is your dream your structure is gone thought his going hunting no if you opt. He saw a deer that he tried to get last summer. Didnt you can i retorted yes Congress Minister well im there and he said what he said is out the subtitle is no heard hes going to great its now the hunt. I just cant go around the entire country is in crisis freezer and camera general secretary hides in the far distant what i want to move. Hes got to make some decisions now. Its become impossible with hanukkah so we have to act change course. The audience are then. Going to my own cause. Its christmas. One coming not surprised oh yes so many kinds. Just a few days after the fortieth anniversary of the founding of east germany it was honaker was dismissed from his post as general secretary played an Important Role in his ouster one of her successor was a gun trents. I and goes as we have a huge task before us i dont even know its your birth going to undertake a revolution on german soil and its only supposed we want to socialism that is economically effective. Politically democratic morally clean. And most of all has its face turned to the people want to know how they didnt manage to get out of these. Treatments because now since this is a warm hearted person sear person reliable and all too nice id say not a tough dog like me. Because hes setting me too much. This whole mess. He mr me thats not going to harness the consumer to bash the merits a stitch in my side or something. Since you want mr me you can lie down. Thank you. Fish. Thank. You much good job with your interrogation. Under other circumstances i would have hired you straight off. Oh no unfortunately weve been betrayed. And so its happened happened. You know you took a while but now were going back on the offensive here in the german democratic republic but for that we need your support. Him well my dear mr but nobody would even. Do so the soviet union is sadly no longer what it once was we have our own problems. But my stock market will ask you straight out can we still rely on the soviet union. As brothers in arms should be able to use the surplus soviet union will fulfill all existing treaties if. Those are all together well get this crisis back on my control again he didnt think if right what. He. Did learn in most schools the situation in moscow is completely out of control. Our debts fall larger than you can imagine first. Did begin good conditions. New loans are. Possibly strict that it was kinder conditions and. Concessions. But regarding. The existence of the german democratic republic. The k. G. B. Understood that east germany could no longer be saved and washed its hands of the matter. On his inaugural visit to moscow eggen krentz met with Mikhail Gorbachev who assured the new east german leader that the soviet union remained its stalwart friend and supporter they were friends but to the digital. Spoke about his first telephone conversation with a gun krentz he affirmed that the relations between the two countries had always focused on the desire to move forward together. That the uk but that just betrayal deeply touched the hearts of all ordinary russians this is ever happened before. Or the russia whether we call it democratic or liberal. Russia trade the germans and yes it was a trail. I knew pretty heavily see it. But i dont know if we gave the german democratic republic the right to freely determine. We did not negotiate the safety of the people who had always been our loyal allies. And that was criminal. Case coming up. Then you know comrades remain seated. Comrade minister. Shall we implement the plan for day x. I have to think in those comrades these are the soviet union will no longer protect us and thats the situation but. And what we do now. Because on prepare an official order that we must destroy all files immediately say cannot fall into the hands of the class enemy. Tons of files. That many shredders so think of some things ive. Done but i just continue finished destroy the franchise for the most important first not the first the files on informers stuff going over this often so we dont want them to be able to deduce our operative methods for administrative buildings should be subject to blackout after sundown thats roughly ground regiments of retreat behind the gates. So it seemed top priority self protection so it shows. You think that will do it given a specialist look you have a better idea than you take over. You know scum its. If i had my way id head over there and give those criminals us thrashing theyd never recover from. Going to get a sense of your seat. German democratic republic has turned into whatever it is not. What we once dreamed its we are not. Despite its enormous apparatus of repression his ministry was unable to quash the protests. What had started as a small protest by civil rights activists against electoral fraud soon turned into enormous demonstrations the peaceful revolution. Is what kinds of fish this is what was crucial was that there were people who led the way who took the risk of the way out of the streets and said its now or never democracy the makati went. Thats when people saw mentioned we could make something happen for us. Thats when they overcame their fear and as you follow in the end they were no longer afraid to test the mass protests or what made the peaceful revolution happen for thats what made the difference in east germany but if the people went out onto the streets and were not afraid once people are no longer afraid the dictatorship crumbles and thats what they did in one thousand eight hundred nine and. In his final speech before the parliament the deputies geared and tackled the man who had once been the most feared in east germany through the use of you could. Come around to see that. There are members of parliament also we have an extraordinary bond with all working people everywhere. We have a bar not we have a bar and yes and ill tell you why if youre not tell you why im not afraid to stand before you want to answer your questions oh thats also democratic right and i dont have a new prepared remarks. But. Oh i just a moment i meant but did it. He did that regarding the rules of procedure i would like to point out that this chamber is not only made up of comrades. I do beg your pardon this is a sign of humanity. But this is just a formal question believe i look i mean i love you all everyone and eventually i leave i love you thats understood im committed to you i was a big i can only ask for your understanding of why i did that i can only ask for forgiveness what is error commish bought us. The i mean that was a moment when i said to myself thats good thats how it should be a lot of. This money its good for people to learn that they shouldnt be afraid of that kind of system for and that kind of man and him and so on. Ok fine ill complete the report as soon as possible so bring clarity into the legal proceedings. And thats all the best to you. Take care of the chaff. In one thousand nine hundred ninety three eric schmidt was sentenced to six years in prison for the murder of two Police Officers in one nine hundred thirty one. Due to poor health and senility he escaped prosecution on all other charges against him related to his actions as head of the stasi in east germany. In late one nine hundred ninety five he was released on probation. But thats not. Distance from the club to. The automotive. So this is the view from my seat in the one section. Sarah willis knows her stuff. And conductor. And she shows just how diverse Classical Music can be. Sarahs music contemporary classical. T. W. Take it personally you went with all the wonderful people and stories that make the game so special. Truth. More than football on line. State by state. The most colorful. The most traditional. Find it all at any time. Check in with the web special. Take a tour of germany state by state on d w dot com. Political consultancy cambridge analytical has suspended its chief executive Alexander Nix after undercover reporters filmed him boasting about dirty tricks in election campaigns the revelations come after an expose that detailed the companys mining and facebook data. The un has said it