Erich Honecker ( German : ( ˈeːʁɪç ˈhɔnɛkɐ ) ; 25 August 1912 - 29 May 1994 ) was a German communist politician who , as the General Secretary of the Socialist Unity Party , led East Germany from 1971 until the weeks preceding the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 .
Erich Honecker ( 25 August 1912 - 29 May 1994 ) was an East German Communist politician who led the German Democratic Republic from 1971 until 1989 .