The attitude of the East Germans to the Polish is burdened with the heritage of the past. After 1945 the composition of the population on both sides of the new border along the Oder and Neisse rivers changed drastically. On the eastern side the Germans were expelled and Polish people were settled. On the western side many expelled Germans found a new home. Despite the fact that the GDR signed the Oder-Neisse border treaty, the ruling communist party (SED) did not encourage contacts between the people living on both sides of Oder and Neisse in the
following years. The policy of the SED towards the Polish communists during the whole period between 1946-1989 was characterised by arrogance and suspicion, at times falling back on old anti-Polish stereotypes. Especially in the 1980s, the GDR tried to prevent the influence of Solidarnosc and dissident ideas from entering the country. Despite this policy, substantial personal contacts developed, particularly in the 1970s when the border was fully opened. The authors argue that current German-Polish relations should make use of these experiences.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:Potsdam/oai:kobv.de-opus-ubp:1126 |
| Date | January 1997 |
| Creators | Crome, Erhard, Franzke, Jochen |
| Publisher | Universität Potsdam, Wirtschafts- und Sozialwissenschaftliche Fakultät. Sozialwissenschaften, Extern. Extern |
| Source Sets | Potsdam University |
| Language | German |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Postprint |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | WeltTrends : Zeitschrift für internationale Politik und vergleichende Studien. - 14 (1997). - S. 113 – 125 |
| Rights | http://opus.kobv.de/ubp/doku/urheberrecht.php |
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