# Modrow government

The Modrow government refers to the government of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) led by Socialist Unity Party (SED) official Hans Modrow from November 1989 until East Germany's first democratically elected government took power on 18 March 1990. Until February 1990, it was the last socialist government of the GDR. From February onward, it was a national unity government including members of the opposition, making it the first true coalition government of the GDR.

## Background

Spurred on by the liberal policies of Glasnost and Perestroika in the Soviet Union, and Mikhail Gorbachev's apparent tolerance of liberal reforms in other countries in the Warsaw Pact, protests began to spread in the German Democratic Republic in 1989. This culminated in a large increase in citizens escaping from the country during the summer of 1989 after Hungary dismantled its portion of the Iron Curtain. At the same time opposition to the incumbent SED was growing - on 9 October 1989, for example, 70,000 people took part in a demonstration in Leipzig calling for free elections and other democratic rights which had been denied to East German citizens since the founding of the GDR. On 18 October 1989 Erich Honecker was ousted as leader by his Politburo as a result of his unwillingness to confront the societal problems which had led to the mass exodus and political protest. The relatively youthful Egon Krenz who was chosen as successor proved to be ineffective, and on 9 November 1989 the Berlin Wall was opened, becoming a symbol of the SED's complete loss of power. Within the first four days of the Wall's opening, 4.3 million people or 25% of the East German population had made the trip across the border to West Germany with many choosing to remain there to take advantage of the higher quality of life. Since 8 November a new Politburo had been in power when the previous one had unanimously resigned. Amongst the new members was former First Secretary of the SED in Dresden Hans Modrow. Despite the personnel change the new government was unable to bring stability to the situation, with increased absenteeism through emigration and citizens taking trips to West Germany placing higher pressure on the East German economy.

## Round Table

As a result of the increasingly fragmented nature of the East German political landscape

## Composition

The Council of Ministers was composed as follows:
| Portfolio | Minister | Took office | Left office | Party |
| Chairman of the Council of Ministers | Hans Modrow | 13 November 1989 | 12 April 1990 | SED |
| Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers Minister for Economic Affairs | Christa Luft | 13 November 1989 | 12 April 1990 | SED |
| Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers Minister for Local Government Bodies | Peter Moreth | 13 November 1989 | 12 April 1990 | LDPD |
| Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers Minister for Church Affairs | Lothar de Maizière | 13 November 1989 | 12 April 1990 | CDU |
| Minister for Foreign Affairs | Oskar Fischer | 13 November 1989 | 12 April 1990 | SED |
| Minister of the Interior | Lothar Ahrendt | 13 November 1989 | 12 April 1990 | SED |
| Minister of Defence | Theodor Hoffmann | 13 November 1989 | 12 April 1990 | SED |
| Minister for Finance and Prices | Uta Nickel | 13 November 1989 | 24 January 1990 | SED |
| Minister for Finance and Prices | Walter Siegert [de] | 29 January 1990 | 12 April 1990 | SED |
| Minister for Education | Hans-Heinz Emons [de] | 13 November 1989 | 12 April 1990 | SED |
| Minister for Science and Technology | Peter-Klaus Budig [de] | 13 November 1989 | 12 April 1990 | LDPD |
| Minister for Trade and Supply | Manfred Flegel [de] | 13 November 1989 | 12 April 1990 | NDPD |
| Minister for Construction and Housing | Gerhard Baumgärtel | 13 November 1989 | 12 April 1990 | CDU |
| Minister for Mechanical Engineering | Karl Grünheid | 13 November 1989 | 11 January 1990 | SED |
| Minister for Mechanical Engineering | Hans-Joachim Lauck | 11 January 1990 | 12 April 1990 | SED |
| Minister for Foreign Trade | Gerhard Beil | 13 November 1989 | 12 April 1990 | SED |
| Minister for Culture | Dietmar Keller | 13 November 1989 | 12 April 1990 | SED |
| Minister for Tourism | Bruno Benthien [de] | 13 November 1989 | 12 April 1990 | LDPD |
| Minister for Health and Social Affairs | Klaus Thielmann | 13 November 1989 | 12 April 1990 | SED |
| Minister of Justice | Hans-Joachim Heusinger | 13 November 1989 | 11 January 1990 | LDPD |
| Minister of Justice | Kurt Wünsche | 11 January 1990 | 12 April 1990 | LDPD |
| Minister for Post and Telecommunications | Klaus Wolf | 13 November 1989 | 12 April 1990 | CDU |
| Minister for Transportation | Heinrich Scholz | 12 April 1990 | February 1990 | SED |
| Minister for Transportation | Herbert Keddi [de] | February 1990 | 2 October 1990 | SED |
| Minister for Environmental Protection and Water Management | Hans Reichelt | 12 April 1990 | 11 January 1990 | DBD |
| Minister for Environmental Protection and Water Management | Peter Diederich [de] | 11 January 1990 | 2 October 1990 | DBD |
| Minister for Nutrition, Agriculture and Forestry | Hans Watzek | 13 November 1989 | 12 April 1990 | DBD |
| Minister for Labour and Wages | Hannelore Mensch | 13 November 1989 | 12 April 1990 | SED |
| Head of the Office for National Security | Wolfgang Schwanitz | 13 November 1989 | 11 January 1990 | SED |
| State Secretary and Head of the Office for Youth and Sport | Wilfried Poßner [de] | 30 November 1989 | 12 April 1990 | SED |
| Ministers without portfolio | Tatjana Böhm | 5 February 1990 | 12 April 1990 | Independent Women's Association |
| Ministers without portfolio | Rainer Eppelmann | 5 February 1990 | 12 April 1990 | DA |
| Ministers without portfolio | Sebastian Pflugbeil [de] | 5 February 1990 | 12 April 1990 | New Forum |
| Ministers without portfolio | Gerd Poppe [de] | 5 February 1990 | 12 April 1990 | Initiative for Peace and Human Rights |
| Ministers without portfolio | Walter Romberg | 5 February 1990 | 12 April 1990 | SPD |
| Ministers without portfolio | Klaus Schlüter [de] | 5 February 1990 | 12 April 1990 | Green League |
| Ministers without portfolio | Wolfgang Ullmann | 5 February 1990 | 12 April 1990 | B90 |
| Ministers without portfolio | Matthias Platzeck | 5 February 1990 | 12 April 1990 | Green |
| Government spokesperson and Head of the Press Office | Wolfgang Meyer | 30 November 1989 | 12 April 1990 | SED |
| Representative of the Chairman of the Council of Ministers for the Central Round Table and for the dissolution of the Office for National Security | Walter Halbritter | December 1989 | February 1990 | SED |

## Committees

| Portfolio | Minister | Took office | Left office | Party | Party |
| Chairman of the State Planning Commission | Gerhard Schürer | 13 November 1989 | 11 January 1990 | | SED |
| Chairman of the Economic Committee | Karl Grünheid | 11 January 1990 | 12 April 1990 | | SED |