Reading about the Stasi victim Matthias Domaschk in Neustrelitz!

Reading about the Stasi victim Matthias Domaschk in Neustrelitz!

On Tuesday, October 28th, at 7 p.m. the time has come: the hall of the Mecklenburg-Strelitz Cultural Quarter will be the venue for a special reading. The association “Memorial Site Stasi Prison Töpferstrasse Neustrelitz e.V.” and the Mecklenburg-Strelitz Cultural Quarter have joined forces to shed a little more light on the reprisals of the GDR People's Chamber. Peter Wensierski will read from his book “Jena Paradies”, which deals with the tragic living conditions of the GDR teenager Matthias Domaschk, who had to leave life far too early.

Matthias Domaschk was born on June 12, 1957 in Görlitz and was a courageous representative of the civil rights movement in the GDR. His fate is overshadowed by the repression that the State Security, also known as the Stasi, brought upon countless people. On April 10, 1981, Domaschk, who was just 23 years old, boarded an express train to Berlin to attend a friend's birthday party. But the train was stopped in Jüterbog and Matthias and three other Jena residents were arrested. Two days after his arrest, he died under unclear circumstances in the Stasi detention center in Gera, which was officially declared a suicide, but is strongly doubted by family and friends.

An eventful life and tragic end

Domaschk grew up in a family that influenced him wherever the GDR regime permitted it. His father had been promoted and the family moved to Neulobeda near Jena in 1970. Matthias was an active and committed young man who worked in the Protestant youth community and later in social initiatives. From 1975 onwards he vehemently campaigned against the injustices of the system, which ultimately brought him into the sights of the state security service.

His resistance was expressed in various forms: he organized aid campaigns for arrested opposition members and protested against the expatriation of important artists - a step that was to have fatal consequences for him. These repressions and the constant pressure from the Stasi ultimately led to the end of the young life, the contours of which we can explore a little better on Tuesday evening.

The role of the Stasi and its effects

The Ministry for State Security, founded 75 years ago, was the GDR's powerful surveillance apparatus that maintained the control of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED). Those who were formerly politically persecuted and their relatives are still fighting against the consequences of this repression today. They are often faced with a sense of injustice as many of them have not been allowed to receive compensation. The Stasi pursued a merciless strategy that ranged from psychological disintegration to direct physical and psychological violence. Those affected report serious effects that continue to this day, including mental illness and economic disadvantage.

Especially in view of recent developments, such as the increase in the SED victims' pension and the planned simplification of the recognition procedures for victims, the memory of Matthias Domaschk is a clear sign that the memories of these dark times must not be forgotten. After all, his story has also led to an increase in applications to leave the country and protests in Jena.

The evening of the reading promises to not only learn more about the life story of Matthias Domaschk, but also about the mechanisms of a regime that determined the lives of millions of people. An evening visit that is really worth it!