Political Dissent and Active Challenge (1949-89)

Question 1

Why was opposition relatively common in the FRG?

Answer 1

• The Basic Law allowed free speech, freedom of the press and no censorship

Question 2

What were 2 reasons why there was minimal political dissent and challenge in the 1950s?

Answer 2

• There were bigger issues to deal with, such as creating an effective government and rebuilding
• Extreme parties were controlled through the 5% hurdle, and were banned if they threatened the constitution or democracy

Question 3

Give 2 examples of parties being banned, and when they were banned.

Answer 3

• The right-wing Socialist Reich Party was banned in 1952
• The KPD was banned in 1956

Question 4

Who tended to be the voice of opposition in the 1950s? Give 2 examples of policies they opposed.

Answer 4

• The SPD
• Adenauer’s ‘year zero’ approach to former Nazi party members, and his desire to align the FRG with Europe, as this made reunification less likely

Question 5

Why did protest increase dramatically in the 1960s?

Answer 5

• The younger generation became politically active, and they were critical of the political system

Question 6

What were 4 issues students protested about?

Answer 6

• The ‘year zero’ principle
• The military
• The USA and Vietnam
• General principles in the FRG

Question 7

Why were students particularly against the ‘year zero’ principle?

Answer 7

• Former Nazis were still in positions of power

Question 8

What were 2 concerns students had about the military?

Answer 8

• It was involved with the West through NATO
• The possibility that it could start to build atomic weapons, or allow other countries to store theirs in the FRG (the risk of which increased when the FRG joined NATO)

Question 9

What 2 things about the USA and Vietnam caused students to protest?

Answer 9

• They were unhappy with how the USA was conducting the war in Vietnam
• They disapproved of perceived government support for the war in Vietnam

Question 10

Give 3 examples of general principles in the FRG students were against.

Answer 10

• Growing materialism, as this went against having a more egalitarian society
• The political dominance of wealthy middle-class men
• The growing authoritarianism of the government

Question 11

What were 2 more radical groups in the 1960s?

Answer 11

• The APO
• The SDS

Question 12

What was the APO, and who did it consist of?

Answer 12

• The Extra-Parliamentary Opposition
• Left-wing students and trade unions

Question 13

What were 3 reasons why the APO existed?

Answer 13

• They distrusted the established, conservative government
• They felt that radical protest was the only way to get their voice heard
• There were no longer any left-wing parties since the KPD was banned and the SPD became less radical

Question 14

List 3 ways the APO would protest.

Answer 14

• Strikes
• Marches
• Demonstrations

Question 15

What was the SDS?

Answer 15

• The Socialist Students’ Union- the student wing of the SPD

Question 16

When and why did the SDS become important?

Answer 16

• In 1959, the SPD became more conservative, so the SDS broke away from them and became more radical

Question 17

Give 3 examples of issues the SDS protested against.

Answer 17

• The Vietnam War
• Nuclear weapons on FRG soil
• ‘Year zero’

Question 18

List 2 ways the SDS would protest.

Answer 18

• Sit-ins at universities
• Mass demonstrations

Question 19

What 2 events caused huge, violent protests to take place?

Answer 19

• The shootings and killings of Benno Ohnesorg and Rudi Dutschke in 1967 and 1968 respectively

Question 20

How had Benno Ohnesorg been killed? What made students even angrier about this?

Answer 20

• He had been shot and killed by a police officer while protesting against the visit of the Shah of Iran, who had a poor human rights record
• The police officer was acquitted 5 months later

Question 21

How had Rudi Dutschke been killed?

Answer 21

• As he was the leader of the SDS, he was shot by a neo-Nazi gunman who had been influenced by Springer newspapers that criticised student protests

Question 22

What happened as a result of the death of Rudi Dutschke?

Answer 22

• The ‘Easter Riots’; 5 days of violent protest and attacks on Springer buildings and personnel

Question 23

When was the last major protest by the SDS, and what was it against?

Answer 23

• 1968
• The Emergency Law

Question 24

What were 2 reasons why student protest abated after 1968?

Answer 24

• Students became older and took their places in mainstream society
• The Emergency Law gave the government powers of arrest and surveillance, which led to a change in student protest

Question 25

How effective was student protest?

Answer 25

• Although it attracted authoritarian responses from the government, its impact was limited as it had not changed FRG society

Question 26

Give 2 figures to show how popular student protest was in Berlin.

Answer 26

• In 1968:
• 92% of Berliners opposed student violence
• 78% of working-class Berliners under the age of 30 were against radical student protest

Question 27

What effect did the Emergency Law have?

Answer 27

• It made some groups feel more marginalised, and become more violent as a result
• Terrorism therefore became a big issue starting from the 1970s

Question 28

Give an example of a terrorist group in the FRG in the 1970s.

Answer 28

• The RAF (Red Army Faction), informally known as the Baader-Meinhof gang

Question 29

What were 4 political beliefs the RAF had, and what did they want to achieve?

Answer 29

• They were a radical left-wing group
• They were against issues such as consumerism and the Vietnam War
• They were disillusioned with the FRG’s political system, and wanted to overthrow it entirely

Question 30

Describe, using examples, how the work of the RAF changed.

Answer 30

• At first it was sabotage and arson, as shown by the fire-bombing of a department store in Frankfurt in 1970
• After this, they started to direct their violence towards people through bombings and assassinations such as in the German Autumn

Question 31

What was the German Autumn? Give 3 details.

Answer 31

• RAF activity in the 1970s was known as the German Autumn
• They killed more than 28 people
• They robbed more than 30 banks to finance their activities
• They kidnapped and assassinated key figures

Question 32

What were attitudes like towards the RAF? Give 2 details and figures.

Answer 32

• They had originally had some public support (in 1970, 20% of the public had sympathy for them)
• However, when they shifted their tactics and became more violent, they lost this support, and people supported the government’s attempts to defeat the group

Question 33

In what 2 ways did the government deal with terrorists like the RAF?

Answer 33

• Hard-line policies, such as wanted posters and encouraging the public to turn them in
• Counter-terrorism forces such as GSG9

Question 34

How successful was the GSG9?

Answer 34

• They were very effective
• In 1977 they successfully rescued hostages from a plane that had been hijacked on its way to Frankfurt

Question 35

When, in particular, did Nazi ideas become popular again? What was the proof of this?

Answer 35

• The mid-1960s
• The neo-Nazi party, the NPD, 4.3% of the federal vote in 1969

Question 36

What were 3 reasons why Nazi ideas become popular again?

Answer 36

• There was an economic recession at this time
• There was growing dislike of guest workers
• Some reflected on the successes of the Nazi period, such as full employment in the mid to late 1930s