Abstract
1989 will remain an unforgettable year. Six peoples of the eastern half of Europe chose the path of revolution to liberty. In five of these states this historically unprecedentially succeeded without violence: in Hungary, Poland, the [German Democratic Republic] GDR, Czechoslovakia and Bulgaria. In Romania, the revolution won against the ruler’s bloody opposition. None of this would have been possible without the knowing tolerance of the Soviet leadership. Only in China has nonviolent revolution still been forced to yield to state weaponry, for the time being.
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- 1.
This text was published in: Carl Friedrich von Weizsäcker: Bedingungen der Freiheit. Reden 1989–1990 [Conditions of Liberty. Speeches 1989–1990] (München–Wien: Hanser, 1990): 87–106. It was translated for this volume by Ms. Ann Hentschel with the financial support of the Udo Keller Foundation.
- 2.
This speech was presented in Leipzig, Potsdam, Berlin and Bratislava in April 1990.
- 3.
In Bratislava.
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von Weizsäcker, C.F. (2015). New Chances for Peace After the End of the Cold War—Conditions of Freedom. In: Bartosch, U. (eds) Carl Friedrich von Weizsäcker: Pioneer of Physics, Philosophy, Religion, Politics and Peace Research. SpringerBriefs on Pioneers in Science and Practice, vol 21. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-13446-8_6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-13446-8_6
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