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The June 17, 1953 Uprising :The Events in East Berlin
East Berlin, the capital of the GDR, was the center of the June 17 uprising. Not only did things start here, but it was also on the streets around Leipzigerstrasse, near the headquarters of the East German political leadership, that Soviet tanks put a bloody end to the revolt. This revolt would later be known as the first upheaval in the name of greater freedom in the countries of the Warsaw pact. Construction workers in Berlin were on high alert when Neues Deutschland, albeit being the official newspaper of the GDR government, published an article on June 14, a Sunday, criticizing a 10% raise in work norms without an equivalent raise in wages announced by the politburo, and condemning the way the politburo was handling the nation’s poor economic situation. The newspaper’s editors in chief were generally criticizing party leader Walter Ulbricht’s harsh line and supported a more moderate group in the Kremlin and politburo. The workers were among those most affected by the new directives and they were very aware of the contradictions involved in the party’s call for socialism to be built on the basis of more work for less pay. The next day, the Neues Deutschland article was passed from hand to hand among the workers at the biggest building sites in East Berlin, the new hospital in the Friedrichshain district and the Stalinallee, which was intended to be East Berlin’s most prestigious promenade.
On Tuesday, June 16, the workers decided to send a delegation to the government to learn about what was happening with the work norms and to present a letter to Otto Grotewohl, president of the Council of Ministers, demanding a meeting and threatening to strike if the politburo refused to revoke the increase in quotas. The letter was rejected. Instead, Die Tribüne, a trade union newspaper, confirmed the introduction of the norms. Angry and disappointed, the workers decided to march immediately to the Council of Ministers. The rally soon swelled into a mass demonstration. Although the protestors’ demands were economic, their chants soon took on a political slant. Some shouted for “Free Elections,” others “We are not slaves.”
The politburo responded to the demonstrations with a call for a general meeting that evening. Otto Grotewohl and Walter Ulbricht announced that it had been wrong to raise the work quotas by administrative order and that instead this should be done “on the basis of persuasion and voluntary cooperation.” But it was too late. The statement failed to calm the masses, who called for a nationwide strike, signaling the vehemence of the workers’ demands.
On that same day, a group of East German workers turned for help to the West Berlin radio broadcaster in the U.S.-controlled sector, RIAS. They asked the station to air their call for a general strike and got their message on the news.
On Wednesday, June 17, the uprisings spread from Berlin throughout the country. About 370,000 people in over 700 cities and towns were on strike. Altogether, about one million people from all social classes protested on the streets, 100,000 of them in Berlin alone. Other centers were Leipzig, Halle, Gera and Jena. The protesters demonstrated for more freedom, the resignation of the government, free elections, unification and better living conditions. In some cities, protesters occupied town halls and secret-service buildings and liberated political prisoners. Some young people removed the Soviet banner from the Brandenburg Gate and burned it.
By noon, the situation had spun out of hand. Instead of addressing the crowd, the politburo called in the Soviet troops for help. The Soviet military commander immediately declared a state of emergency. T-34 tanks – 600 in Berlin alone – were sent to control the crowds, firing warning shots. GDR police and military supported the troops and, by the end of the day, had contained the uprising.
The first uprising in Eastern Europe was ended through bloodshed and intimidation: Estimates of casualties range from 25 to 125 people, including both civilians and German authorities who refused to open fire on their compatriots. As many as 25,000 people were arrested, many spending years in prison, some sentenced to death.
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