"I was curious to see how the new electorate would experience Helmut Kohl. At the time, West Germany had become increasingly disenchanted with the Federal Government. I was struck by the apparent change in atmosphere amongst the new arrivals. They looked petrified. They had obviously already become really fearful of the social and economic changes that lay ahead. An East German artist, who I got to know after the fall of the Wall, told me, 'for us it was like being in the war. We lay in the trenches, everyone was terrified of what was to come.'
I was very impressed by Helmut Kohl's speech, even if I was among those wishing for a change of government at the time. He mapped out a truly visionary approach to things, attended to hopes and aspirations – even I found it hard to not to be impressed. Nevertheless it wasn't difficult to pick up people's deep mistrust of things new or political. The celebratory mood had already soured."
Bernd Schmidt (Göttingen)
