Visit from Düsseldorf - 30 citizens of the twin city visit Chemnitz
30 Düsseldorfers visited their twin city of Chemnitz at the beginning of November 2019. There, they met 30 Chemnitz residents, among others, who will be paying a return visit to the state capital of North Rhine-Westphalia next year.
The reason for the visit was to mark the 30th anniversary of the peaceful revolution and reunification in the coming year.
The visit concluded on Sunday with a discussion about these reunification issues and their significance for today. In the packed Stavo hall, participants from the groups and contemporary witnesses shared their memories and ideas for the future.
The Düsseldorfers expressed their thanks for the warm welcome and the many good conversations and impressions that they are now taking back home with them - including an original piece from the Berlin Wall. The programme for the visit included a visit to the prison on Kaßberg, a guided tour and discussions with former prisoners and contemporary witnesses released by the FRG and a visit to the theatre.
Next year, the 30 Chemnitz residents will make a return visit to Düsseldorf.
"Talking less about each other and more with each other can be a recipe for eliminating prejudices and misunderstandings. This worked very well during this visit and this weekend," said Lord Mayor Barbara Ludwig following the meetings.
Background:
The town twinning with Chemnitz has a special historical significance for Düsseldorf: in 1987, the then Lord Mayor Klaus Bungert asked the SED leadership to establish contact for the purpose of a German-German town twinning. The answer came immediately and this partnership was officially sealed in 1988. After the fall of the Berlin Wall, Düsseldorf supported the twin city in establishing local self-government.
The two city administrations are still in contact on specialised issues. And countless personal relationships have developed between the people of the two cities since then. There are mutual invitations and encounters, and not just at civic associations and festivals. Sport, art, environmental commitment and much more are constantly giving rise to new contacts.
Town twinning
Chemnitz is on friendly terms with twelve twin cities.
The town twinning with Düsseldorf was sealed in 1988 and since then there have been many contacts with the state capital of North Rhine-Westphalia.
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