FREE ESSAY ON GERMANY: STILL DIVIDED

GERMANY: STILL DIVIDED

The shocking fall of communism in Eastern and Central Europe in the late eighties was
remarkable for both its rapidity and its scope. None more than for East and West Germany.
"The unification of Germany has been one of the most significant and moving events of the
20th century. Yet the euphoria of those heady days in autumn 1989, when the world watched
in rapt attention as the Berlin Wall came tumbling down, has since fizzled. The process
has proven to be far more painful than (then) Chancellor Helmut Kohl had promised Germans
in 1990 on the eve of the first all-German elections since the Nazi's rise to
power."(Ireland, 541) This resulted from the underestimation that was placed on
integrating the democratic system of government and free-market economy of West Germany
with the communist foundation of East Germany. The shift from communism took a whole new
context in Germany. The peoples involved were not looking to affect a narrow set of
policy reforms; indeed, what was at stake was a hyper-radical shift from the long-held
communist ideology to a western blueprint for governmental and economic policy
development. According to theories of modernization, higher levels of socioeconomic
achievement facilitates an increase in open competition and, ultimately, assists in the
establishment of democracy.
The problem inherent in this type of monumental change is that, according to Helga A.
Welsh, " the collapse of authoritarian rule has released national, ethnic, religious, and
cultural conflicts which cannot be solved by purely economic policies"(27). Generally it
has been theorized that the most effective fashion in which to remedy these many
difficulties is by drafting a constitution. But, what seems to be clear in Germany is the
unsatisfactory ability of a constitution to resolve the problems of nationalism and
ethnic differences. Germany's current situation gives validity to the statement that "
what works in theory doesn't necessarily work in practice." This is because the economic
advancements that were anticipated to bring prosperity to East Germany didn't occur as
planned. 
It was assumed that the integration of the economies would be a difficult but attainable
goal because West Germany was one of the world's most productive and prosperous
economies. The last ten years have shown that this was not the case. Due to East
Germany's longtime adherence to communist policies, it faced great complexity in making
the transition to a pluralist system as well as a market economy. As Preuss posits these
problems were threefold: The genuine economic devastations wrought by the communist
regimes, the transformation of the social and economic classes of the command economy and
, finally the creation of a constitutional structure for political entities that lack the
undisputed integrity of a nation state (48). The failure of the economic integration is
at the root of the ills that have plagued the two countries since unification.
In regards to the economic aspects of unification, some major problems exist in the
transition to a free-market economy. First, and probably the most significant factor is
the epidemic of unemployment that has infected East Germany. Prior to unification
slightly over half of East Germany's 16 million people were employed and this figure has
been steadily declining since 1989. Currently, "the east's unemployment rate of more than
17% is double that of the west's (Aaland, r12). In a market economy these grim statistics
breed frustration and discontent among the populace. 
Another dilemma presenting itself to Germany is the enormous expense of upgrading the
dilapidated infrastructure in the east. The east is decades behind technologically and
hundreds of millions of dollars have been required to improve the roads, railroads,
telecommunications, public services, postal service, and most importantly educational
system. Along with this is the deplorable environmental conditions that were left by the
old communist regime. These necessary conditions must be renovated before funding can
stimulate the economy and is an important factor in the east's current economic
nightmare. 
One other important issue that has contributed to the east's depression is the economic
policy of the privatizing of state property. This is a sensitive subject in any country's
transition from a command economy. For one, a system of procedures must be adopted simply
to transfer such large amounts of property to private citizens. Also, there must be
mechanisms put in place to both protect new owners form claims of previous owners and to
satisfy former owner without alienating possible future investors. The problem arises in
that private property laws do not always coincide with the fair concept of restitution.
As Petra Bauer-Kaase states, "East Germans still have difficulties in adjusting to a
political system where individuals have a great deal of responsibility for there own
life" (307). The former East Germans look upon this issue with contempt, because it is
the Westerners who have control over the rules, as well as the enforcement of those
rules. This is merely one of a multitude of instances where this mistrust between the
sides manifests itself. 
The failure in the economic and political integration has been the catalyst for numerous
other social ills. The main being a backlash of violence against ethnic groups and a rise
in right wing political groups that support this behavior. Many believe that the economic
effects of unification, particularly the increase in unemployment, is causing Germans and
foreigners to compete for jobs, housing, and other scarce commodities, and in turn
generating resentment among the German citizens. As, Patrick Ireland adds," high
unemployment and uncertainty about job prospects during the transformation of a command
economy into a market economy are seen as having produced disorientation and rootless
ness among vulnerable people in the east...Grievances become politicized, with right-wing
extremists mobilizing support and winning sympathy from the public. Existing social
divisions widen, and those groups blamed for the perceived problems become favored
targets...Thus East Germans, some of whom believed that they were competing with foreign
contract laborers for consumer goods and other resources before unification, began to
feel seriously deprived compared to their wealthy western neighbors after 1989. It became
easier to make scapegoats of foreigners"(544).
This rise in racism and ethnic violence can be directly attributed to the ongoing
economic saga that the east is experiencing. They envy their western neighbors but feel
turn their cheek because of the strong traditional sense of nationalism. So their
disappointment is taken out on any one who is not German. As Patrick Ireland writes the
east Germans," insecure and unsure of their role in a multicultural society, fear
becoming permanent second-class citizens in united Germany. Foreigners have become the
"whipping boy", the scapegoat for all the frustrations of the past, the disillusionment
of the present, and the fears of the future"(545).
It seems that much more than the economies are diverging between the opposite sides of
Germany. Although there are no really significant conflicts between Germans, the
attitudes of the two sides are going in opposite directions. The Wall Street Journal
reported that a German study showed that within the next five years westerners believed
that their lives would improve while easterners fear it worsening. Also westerners were
more satisfied with their careers, finances, and health while the easterner's were
happier than their counterparts when it came to their families, marriages, and children.
Also, Dagmar Aaland reports that a majority of the easterner's disappointments and
pessimistic attitudes stem "from joblessness and 'unrealistic expectations' of the time
needed to catch up with the west"(r12). 
While unification had occurred theoretically, in reality the Germany today is one of a de
facto separate-but-equal citizenship. There is no denying that there have been many
problems associated with the unification of East and West Germany. From the miserable
failure of the implementation of a free-market to the social tribulations that evolved;
.the transition from a communist state to a liberal democracy is a very challenging one,
and there is no real way to predict how the German experience will turn out. As Preuss
writes, " The transition from an authoritarian political regime and its concomitant
command economy to a liberal democracy and a capitalist economy is as unprecedented as
the short-term integration of two extremely different societies into one state"(57). In
other words, the unification of Germany is one of the most complex and unparalleled
historical events, on a social and economic level, since the unification of Germany.
Bibliography
References
Aaland, Dagmar. "A Nation Still Divided", The Wall Street Journal. 27 Sept. 1999. 
p.r12 & r18.
Bauer-Kaase, Petra. "Germany in Transition: the Challenge of Coping with Unification.". 
German Unification: Processes and Outcomes. M. Donald Hancock and Helga A. Welsch, eds.
Boulder: Westview, 1994. 285-311
Ireland, Patrick. "Socialism, Unification Policy and the Rise of Racism In
Eastern Germany". International Migration Review. Fall 1997. p. 541-68
Preuss, Ulrich K. "German Unification: Political and Constitutional Aspects." United 
Germany and the New Europe. Heinz D. Kurz, ed. Brookfield: Elgar, 1993 p.47-58
Welsh, Helga A. "The Collapse of Communism in Eastern Europe and the GDR: 
Evolution, Revolution, and Diffusion." German Unification: Processes and Outcomes. M.
Donald Hancock and Helga A Welsh, eds. Boulder: Westview, 1994. p.17-34.