without as much external pressure to reform. Additionally, the Tiananmen Square protests occurred in the midst of a period of political upheaval in China, with the death of Hu Yaobang and power struggles within the Chinese Communist Party contributing to the government's hardline response.
On the other hand, East Germany's government was significantly influenced by the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of communist regimes in other Eastern European countries. The international events of 1989, such as the Velvet Revolution in Czechoslovakia and the democratic reforms in Poland, served as strong signals to the East German government that change was necessary in order to maintain power. This led to the eventual opening of the Berlin Wall and the reunification of East and West Germany.
In conclusion, while both East Germany and China responded to protests in 1989 by cracking down on civil liberties, the international events during that time had a greater impact on East Germany, leading to its eventual transition to democracy, while China remained under authoritarian rule.
Compare how international
events affected the
responses of East
Germany’s and China’s
governments to the protests
of 1989. (1 point)
The governments of
both East Germany
and China curtailed
civil liberties and
became less
democratic following
the protests of 1989,
making both
countries exceptions
to the larger global
trend of collapsing
communist rule.
The protests in East
Germany in 1989
were part of a larger
trend of successes
in anti-communist
activism in
neighboring
countries, making it
harder for the
government to
continue to deny
citizens’ civil rights.
China was more
isolated from this
larger trend so its
government was
able to assert firmer
control over protests
1 answer