Tuesday, August 14, 2007
East German Shoot-to-Kill Order Is Found
"BERLIN, Aug. 12 — Seventeen years after German reunification, archivists have found the first written proof that East German border guards had been ordered to shoot to kill anyone trying to escape to West Germany, including women and children.
Deutsche Presse-Agenture, via European Pressphoto Agency
A 1962 photo showed East German guards with the body of a man who was shot when he tried to cross the Berlin Wall.
The seven-page order, dated Oct. 1, 1973, was discovered last week in the regional archive office in the eastern German city of Magdeburg. Though unsigned, it shows that the Ministry for State Security, known as the Stasi, had told guards that they must “stop or liquidate” anyone trying to cross the border.
“Do not hesitate to use your firearm, not even when the border is breached in the company of women and children, which is a tactic the traitors have often used,” the document said. "
If you click on the title of this blog it should link you with the NY Times article from which the above quote came
I don't think anyone who reads the article is surprised by its revelation. The West has always been suspected and even accused the East (Soviets) of murdering people trying to flee to freedom. What is surprising is coming across documents revealing the startling truth (allegedly).
Can this be believed? Yes, because of eyewitness testimony of the "60s and '70s. Do we want to believe these killings happened? No, because it goes against all our moral and humane values.
It does make me ask this question.
Has the United States engaged in similar acts ?
Deutsche Presse-Agenture, via European Pressphoto Agency
A 1962 photo showed East German guards with the body of a man who was shot when he tried to cross the Berlin Wall.
The seven-page order, dated Oct. 1, 1973, was discovered last week in the regional archive office in the eastern German city of Magdeburg. Though unsigned, it shows that the Ministry for State Security, known as the Stasi, had told guards that they must “stop or liquidate” anyone trying to cross the border.
“Do not hesitate to use your firearm, not even when the border is breached in the company of women and children, which is a tactic the traitors have often used,” the document said. "
If you click on the title of this blog it should link you with the NY Times article from which the above quote came
I don't think anyone who reads the article is surprised by its revelation. The West has always been suspected and even accused the East (Soviets) of murdering people trying to flee to freedom. What is surprising is coming across documents revealing the startling truth (allegedly).
Can this be believed? Yes, because of eyewitness testimony of the "60s and '70s. Do we want to believe these killings happened? No, because it goes against all our moral and humane values.
It does make me ask this question.
Has the United States engaged in similar acts ?
YES
Labels: Generations, Intolerance, Morality, Responsibility, Sacrifice, Tolerance
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