World Festival of Youth and Students
The World Festival of Youth and Students are irregularly organized international youth encounters, from the World Federation of Democratic Youth ( WFDY ) were launched in 1947. The participating youth and student associations are predominantly left, often aligned communist.
Chronicle of the World Festival
The WFDY was founded on November 10, 1945 decided to organize World Youth Day; these meetings should " develop international friendship and understanding between young people of different countries and strengthen, make an important contribution to the reconstruction of the world and to maintain peace and show all appropriate means life, activity, aspirations of the youth of different countries ".
At the World Festival is discussed and celebrated, one hears and offers music and lectures. The events are influenced politically and culturally. Especially in the time of the Cold War, they were frequently the subject of lively debate, especially in 1959 and 1962 as they took place in Western countries, as well as 1968, when the student revolt and the Prague Spring also influenced the festival in Sofia.
World Festival:
Logos of the World Festival
Logo of the Second World Festival 1949 in Budapest
Logo of the III. World Festival 1951 in East Berlin
Logo of the Fourth World Festival 1953 in Bucharest
Logo of the Fifth World Festival 1955 in Warsaw
Logo of the VI. World Festival 1957 in Moscow
Logo of the Seventh World Festival 1959 in Vienna
Logo of the Eighth World Festival 1962 in Helsinki
Logo of the IX. World Festival 1968 in Sofia
Logo of the Tenth World Festival 1973 in East Berlin
Logo of the XI. World Festival 1978 in Havana
Logo of the XII. World Festival in Moscow in 1985
Logo of the XIII. World Festival 1989 in Pyongyang
Logo of the XIV World Festival 1997 in Havana
Logo of the XV. World Festival 2001 in Algiers
Logo of the XVI. World Festival 2005 in Caracas
Logo of the XVII. World Festival 2010 in Pretoria
The World Festival in German-speaking
1951 Berlin
The first World Festival in the German Democratic Republic were held until 19 August 1951 in East Berlin on 5. The opening and closing ceremonies were held at the Walter Ulbricht Stadium. To the youth meetings were officially around 26,000 participants from 104 countries. The young GDR used the World Festival intensively as an opportunity to gain an international reputation. The Festival Anthem " In August, the roses bloom " went down in the popular songs of the GDR. The composer Günter Kochan wrote the song signals the Youth of the World Festival (Text: Paul Wiens ).
The on April 24, 1951 banned as unconstitutional in the Federal Republic of Germany FDJ called on to participate in the World Festival. Chairman of the Preparatory Committee for the World Youth Festival in 1951 was the Bremer Pastor John Oberhof. Participation willing youths were partially prevented by federal authorities from leaving and thus participate. By 28 July 1951 on 6000 FDJ - turers of the border were brought forcibly returned to their homes. Transport companies, the actions supported the banned West FDJ were threatened with penalties. Alone in the Lower Saxony Police 11,000 police officers were put on alert. Nevertheless, more than 35,000 young people from the Federal Republic of Germany and West Berlin took part in the festival.
Also participants from Switzerland have faced obstacles to entry.
Because of shortage of supply in the eastern sector of Berlin, many young people followed the invitation of West Berlin Mayor Ernst Reuter, to furnish to temporary soup kitchens. The FDJ chairman Erich Honecker then sent members of the FDJ in the western part of Berlin, which led to street battles with the West Berlin police and the fight against Inhumanity. The incident was investigated by the Groscurth Committee.
1959 Vienna
18,000 official participants met from 26 July to 4 August in Vienna. Thus, the number of participants has almost halved two years earlier against the World Festival. From the previous World Festival, the Vienna event by the high number of young people from Africa and Asia differed. Participants came from Germany, among others of the Free German Youth and the Liberal Students' Association of Germany. The Vienna press had decided not to publish anything about the events.
1973 Berlin
1973 found the World Festival once again in the GDR instead. In the nine -day event about eight million visitors came along with 25,600 guests from 140 countries. On 95 platforms, it was beat and rock music and songs of singing clubs. The victorious in a contest festival song was: " The world is young guests in Berlin, and it does not adhere drum if it suits the enemy ". Deputy Head of the organizing committee was the then employees in the FDJ Central Council and later mayor of Dresden Wolfgang Berghofer.
Due to the closeness to the Woodstock Music Festival in the USA, the World Festival 1973, were called the "Woodstock of the East".
From the Federal Republic of Germany, a delegation of 800 participants drove to the World Festival, by the initiative committee Tenth World Festival (AK Festival ( among others SDAJ, VDS and MSB Spartacus ) and Coordination Group X. World Festival ( Young Socialists, DGB - Youth, Young Democrats and others) ) was compiled. On the Bebelplatz in East Berlin, the then chairman of Young Socialists could represent the first time in the GDR social democratic positions publicly.
The Ministry for State Security prevented through June 28, 1973, the journey of 2720 " negative people " to East Berlin, against 2073 persons warrant was issued. To ensure the superiority of the German Democratic Republic in controversial discussions, disguised as FDJler employees of the Stasi were dispatched to the discussion points that had to represent the policy of the party and government of the GDR in critical discussions. You should also collect hazardous leaflets and document and deliver detailed reports on their work regularly. In addition, the DDR participants were trained ideologically before the World Festival. For this purpose, the FDJ work of the previous year, for example, the FDJ study year, aligned in the entire GDR ideologically to the youth meeting.
The East German government had the main venue, the Walter Ulbricht Stadium, renamed the stadium in the world youth. Walter Ulbricht died during the Tenth World Festival in the guest house of the government of the GDR on Doellnsee. His name was largely removed shortly after his death from the GDR historiography. At the same time the nearby Metro Station Walter Ulbricht Stadium, which was a ghost station since the wall was built, was renamed Stadium of World Youth, which was visible to passing West Berlin subway passengers, because on DDR Maps were the " ghost stations " not in list, and GDR citizens were not allowed to use.