Frankfurt (Germany), 9 Nov. (LaPresse) – To mark the 37th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has called for the protection of freedom and democracy in Germany and across Europe. In a social media post, he recalled the three events that 9 November commemorates: Kristallnacht, or the Night of Broken Glass, during which the Nazis unleashed a wave of violence against the Jewish population in 1938; the proclamation of the Republic in 1918; and the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. “9 November represents both the darkest and the happiest hours of our history: anti-Semitism and persecution, the dawn of democracy and the fall of the Berlin Wall,” said Merz. “Freedom and democracy can never be taken for granted. Let us protect them, in Germany and across Europe.” This afternoon, the Chancellor, together with Bavaria’s Minister-President Markus Söder and the President of the Bavarian State Parliament, Ilse Aigner – tipped to be the next Federal President – will attend a ceremony to mark the 20th anniversary of Munich’s main synagogue, Ohel Jakob.
Berlin Wall, Merz: “Freedom and democracy must never be taken for granted”
Frankfurt (Germany), 9 Nov. (LaPresse) – To mark the 37th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has called for the protection of freedom and democracy in Germany and across Europe. In a social media post, he recalled the three events that 9 November commemorates: Kristallnacht, or the Night of Broken Glass, during which the Nazis unleashed a wave of violence against the Jewish population in 1938; the proclamation of the Republic in 1918; and the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. “9 November represents both the darkest and the happiest hours of our history: anti-Semitism and persecution, the dawn of democracy and the fall of the Berlin Wall,” said Merz. “Freedom and democracy can never be taken for granted. Let us protect them, in Germany and across Europe.” This afternoon, the Chancellor, together with Bavaria’s Minister-President Markus Söder and the President of the Bavarian State Parliament, Ilse Aigner – tipped to be the next Federal President – will attend a ceremony to mark the 20th anniversary of Munich’s main synagogue, Ohel Jakob.