Tens of thousands of people have gathered to celebrate the fall of the Berlin Wall 35 years ago in Germany’s capital.
It was “a lucky day for which we Germans are still grateful today”, the chancellor, Olaf Scholz, said on Saturday.
Built in 1961, the Berlin Wall stood for 28 years at the frontline of the cold war between the Americans and the Soviets. It was built by communists to cut off east Germans from the supposed ideological contamination of the west, and to stem the tide of people fleeing east Germany.
The wall carved a 156.4km (97.2 mile) swath through Berlin’s heart and the surrounding countryside, and through the hearts of many of its people. When the border was opened 35 years ago, it took less than a year for Germany’s reunification on 3 October 1990 to take place.
Today only a few stretches of the wall remain, mostly as a tourist attraction.
For the anniversary celebrations, organisers created a temporary wall of 5,000 posters, designed by children and adults, under the theme of “We uphold freedom”. The installation along a 4km stretch of the former wall in downtown Berlin attracted a steady flow of visitors, including many foreign tourists.
The posters combine the demands of east German protesters in autumn 1989 – such as freedom of expression, freedom of the press and freedom to travel – with present day desires and were created as part of workshops in schools, churches and local art groups.
“Uphold freedom, because without freedom everything else is nothing,” said Berlin’s mayor, Kai Wegner, at an official anniversary event at the Berlin Wall memorial with Germany’s president, Frank-Walter Steinmeier.
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“Freedom and democracy have never been a matter of course,” the mayor said, warning that both were under attack from many sides.
On Saturday night, 700 professional and amateur musicians were expected to perform on different stages along the path of the former wall.
Musicians were planning to sing Heroes by David Bowie and Freiheit (Freedom) by the German rockstar Marius Müller-Westernhagen, among other songs. Song lyrics will be displayed on large screens so that the audience can sing along.
The Russian dissident band Pussy Riot is expected to perform on Sunday to conclude the celebrations.