Behind the Headlines the Jews of East Germany

–Most American Jews know virtually nothing about the German Democratic Republic (GDR or East Germany), and even less about its Jewish population. Although America has maintained diplomatic relations with the GDR since 1974, this Warsaw Pact nation is generally ignored here. For most Americans and Israelis, the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) is the only Germany.

In an effort to part the Iron Curtain enough to show to Western Jewry that the Jews of the GDR are well-treated, for the first time the Liga fur Volkerfreundschaft (League for Friendship Among the People) of the GDR invited a delegation of three Anglo-Jewish journalists, including this correspondent.

The slogan of the Liga is “Friendship among the people promotes peace.” The 10-day trip in October was arranged in cooperation with the Jewish Gemeinde (Community) of the GDR and the American Society for the Study of the GDR.

Our invitation to study the Jewish community of the GDR probably meant that the government was confident it could present a positive image of Jewish life. The small Jewish community does live quite well in East Germany.

Although heavy reparations to the Soviet Union and Poland in the post-war years delayed the GDR’s economic recovery, it is now the most highly industrialized nation in Eastern Europe, ranking among the world’s top nine industrial growth nations. Per capita income is the highest in Eastern Europe, with nationally-owned enterprises accounting for nearly 96 percent of industrial output.

JEWS RECEIVE HONORARY PENSIONS

“Victims of fascism, ” including the Jewish community, receive honorary pensions and other benefits that allow them to live a comfortable life. (Emigration is not permitted until retirement age, but this is not a uniquely Jewish issue.)

After Germany’s unconditional surrender to the Allies on May 8, 1945, the United States, the United Kingdom, France and the Soviet Union had occupied the country, with the three commanders in chief in charge of their respective zones.

The GDR was proclaimed on Oct. 11, 1949, following a series of People’s Congresses in the Soviet Zone. The leading party, the Socialist Unity Party (SED), was formed in 1946 from the Communist Party and the Social Democrats. (The U.S. State Department describes the coalition as a “forced fusion”; the government of the GDR refers to a “voluntary merger.”)

The GDR was recognized by the Soviet Union and the Soviet bloc nations immediately after proclaiming itself a nation, but it was largely unrecognized by non-Communist countries until the 1960s. America withheld recognition until 1974. Even today, the United States considers East Berlin, the capital of the GDR, as the Soviet sector of that city and not a legally constituent part of the GDR.

In addition to the SED, with over two million members, the GDR has four other major parties, with a total membership of some 370,000. One of the four is the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), with about 80,000 members.

In a Communist country dedicated to the ultimate disappearance of all religion, it is interesting that government-approved literature describes the CDU as uniting “people of Christian faith whose code of ethics motivates them to take part in building socialist society … The CDU is committed to the progressive traditions of Christian humanism and advocates trusting cooperation with Marxists.” The Protestant Church is active in social and political affairs in the GDR, with some 8 million members in a total population of 17 million.

PUBLICATION OF BOOKS ON JUDAISM

Gerald Gotting, head of the CDU and also president of the Liga, told us that his party was responsible for the publication of books relating to Judaism, and coordination of other cultural Jewish activities. He presented us with a magnificently illustrated book, just off the press, entitled “The Synagogue in German History.” The book depicted the grandeurs of Jewish culture and religion in Germany past.

At present, the Jewish community of the GDR is struggling to stay alive despite formidable demographic odds. If the future of Judaism in the GDR seems less viable than the present, probably even hopeless, the government does not appear to be at fault.

Based on my observations and interviews, it does not seem that the GDR, like some other Communist countries, forcibly represses religion. The Jewish community receives support from the government for synagogue and cemetery maintenance, cultural events and other activities. But isolation and attrition, and not government repression, are gradually dissolving the community.

(Tomorrow: Part Two)