Fall of Berlin Wall, 25 years later

It has been 25 years since the fall of the Berlin Wall reuniting East and West Germany. Berlin Wall that physically, politically and economically divided East and West and existed for more than three decades fell in November 1989. The unification of two Germanys completed in 1990. West German politicians vowed to help East Germany and bring it out of poverty and bring prosperity to the region. Trapped in poverty for years, East Germans, estimated to be 13.5 percent of the population or estimated two million people, got out of east in droves immediately after the unification.

However, 25 years later, East Germany still shows signs of underdevelopment. According to some estimates, West is still pumping money into the East. Published reports indicate that more than $3 trillion, $70 billion a year, has been poured into the East German projects and cities in the form of aids. This is based on a core principal of “solidarity” which calls for 5.5 percent of the country’s income tax revenue to be shared with former communist countries including East Germany. Some signs of improvements including the increase of life expectancy and others can be seen in former East Germany.