European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - March 31, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse Associated press depression vandalism and heavy drinking have become a Way of life in a former hotel converted into a resettlement Center for East germans. The Center in Remagen is one of Many throughout West Germany that opened last year to accommodate the Waves of East germans seeking a better life in the West. Similar problems have been reported at other centers even As the surge from the East has dwindled to a trickle since the East German elections and the West German decision to curb various relocation benefits. Quot at the beginning in september it was really euphoric Here Quot said Center director Daniel Selle at the Small town about 15 Miles South of Bonn. Quot the people who began coming later have a lot of problems that they brought with them from the East. They have had trouble holding jobs or they Quot Many of them too had illusions about what life in the West would be like a Selle added. Immediately after the East German elections the West German government decided to Cut Many of the special privileges enjoyed by East germans settling in West Germany. The measures effective july 1, Are aimed at stopping the influx of re settlers that has brought nearly 500,000 East germans to the West in the last 14 months severely straining West Germany s House a and Job markets. The exodus intensified dramatically after Hungary opened its Borders to East germans in september and thousands of Asylum seekers poured into West Germany. But the influx continued even after the toppling of East Germany s communist government in october. Bonn is pushing for Quick unification in Hopes that the East germans will decide to stay Home especially now that a democratically elected government will take Over. The Remagen Center financed by the state of Rheinland Pfalz and operated by the red Cross now houses 76 people. The rooms and winding a hallways Are in Good shape in spite of peeling wallpaper and other cosmetic defects. In addition to rooms the Center offers several private and three communal kitchens a sitting room and a huge donated clothes outlet where residents can Pluck out a wardrobe. But according to Center operators the Joy and optimism that characterized the first months Are gone. They say that Brand new refrigerators in one communal Kitchen stand empty because people were stealing food from each other an intended playroom for children was turned by residents into a garbage dump and animosity abounds Between East germans and the Many ethnic germans from the soviet Union and other East bloc countries who also live in the Center. Worst of All they say increasing numbers of re settlers Are attempting to numb their depression with drink. There have been reports in the past few weeks from reception centers around the country about fighting among re settlers and heavy drinking. Selle an easygoing Young Man with round wire rimmed glasses and a Long Ponytail characterizes his work at the Center As frustrating. Quot people Here Aren t willing to act As a Community there is no Solidarity Quot he said. Quot and every monday i have a whole list of things to get repaired which were destroyed Over the weekend Quot although Many East German newcomers have managed to get a piece of the Prosperity they sought others have been left behind. Several re settlers at the Center expressed feelings of disappointment and frustration. Quot we were tempted to come Here by All the Nice grateful for a place to stay the Hobusch family at a resettlement Center in Remagen West Germany. Things that were dangled out in front of us Quot said Eric Patz 45, a Miner from Karl Marx Stadt who is unemployed. Quot it was All Quot and now that we re Here we re treated like the last piece of garbage Quot his Friend Marion Schilling added. Schilling 24, has been living in the Center with her Boyfriend and 7-year-old daughter since december. The three live in one Small room filled with old furniture and other family belongings. Several Beer cans were also scattered around. A i knew things would be hard Here but not this hard Quot she said. Quot i Don t get enough Money to buy the Basic things my daughter needs like new newcomers from East Germany presently receive Quot integration Money Quot from the government of about 230 Marks $135 per week. The sum May vary according to family size. This Money is expected to remain after some other benefits Are Cut off in july. However not All settlers at the Center Are embittered. Resident Bernd Hobusch says he and his family were grateful to have had a place to stay after their arrival. A we had so Many things to take care of getting our papers in order and looking for work Quot said Hobusch a 39-year-old construction worker from Dessau. Quot living Here at least relieved us of one Hobusch and his family will be moving out of the Center soon. He his wife and four children have been living in one room there since december. Quot in be had a Job since january but i had to earn enough to pay a Deposit on an apartment Quot Hobusch said. Quot it was really hard to find an apartment with four children. Landlords Here Don t like Hobusch complained about the attitude of Many other East germans at the Center. Quot a lot of them just collect Money from the state and sit around All Day drinking. They live Here for months and done to even look for Page 14 a a a the stars and stripes saturday. I for a amps by Manntie Garcia a an emigre from the soviet Union says resettlement Center s lurid past is no problem for her. House becomes a Home Ingres in Germany Teedee Arrington Doke is lantern Bureau he old neighbourhood on Weilersbache Strasse in Einsiedler Hof West Germany Isnit what it used to be. For nearly 20 years the Annabella Haus lured american gis and germans to its premises with by advertised promises of sex Mit Herz sex with a a i when would be clients ring the Doorbell now they Vert hat new residents have replaced prostitutes in Ark Gray building in a suburban commercial zone Een Ramstein a and the Vogel Weh District of is lantern. Out 90 men women and children from East bloc tries including East Germany Poland and the soviet Are living in what is now a refurbished dormitory they look for jobs and permanent Homes in the West very time a bus comes by you see about 10 of them g off with groceries Quot said Tom Kern a retired air enlisted Man who owns Tom s Golden Nugget a bar enter by americans and germans. It is the former of a closest neighbor. E West German state of Rheinland Pfalz is leasing building for five years at a fee Between 70 and 80 a or an average of $45 a month per person. It can e up to 250 people. Silents pay 9 Marks or about $5.35, per person a to live in the building until they find work. Once a y member has found work the family pays up to 500 a or about $298, per month. Hen they first arrive each emigre can collect 240 a or about $143, every two weeks in government re payments. Once they fill out certain paperwork re eligible for unemployment Money As Well. Tes can get clothing from a local German red operation. In addition Church groups and other actions occasionally bring other necessities to i West Germany will severely curtail its ment assistance for East germans july 1, people g trom other East bloc countries will continue to y various benefits. Ouse at can be used for refugees Quot e an utter of Rheinland Pfalz a social assistance Gruttner said the bordello s owners had paid for extensive renovations to the building. Two Small kitchens have been added to each floor. Additions to each of the roughly 60 bedrooms include tour Beds placed bunk style a table chairs and closets. What once was a Brothel s bar is now a multipurpose room for watching television and playing Board games. The place became a relocation Center in late february about two months after the old business shut Down. But word of the Annabella Haus dramatic change of career has been slow to spread. Quot you re kidding Quot said a woman customer at a nearby video rental store. Nearby businesses report that would be bordello clients still Stop in to get directions to the building which is separated from the Well maintained portion of Weilersbache Strasse by a Short dark Lane. And those seeking intimate liaisons either ignore or Don t see a hand lettered sign that announces that Annabella Haus has closed. West German officials Are reluctant to discuss the buildings former use although prostitution is Legal in West Germany. A German red Cross official said he was concerned that any stigma associated with the Brothel might hinder those who live there in finding jobs. But one neighbor in particular is pleased about the influx of new residents. Senior pastor James Tomberlin of the Faith Baptist Church already has stopped by to drop off clothing donations and invite the emigres to Church. The Church has 700 German and american members. Quot we think its a better use of the building of course Quot Tomberlin said. At Tom s Golden Nugget several of the building s new tenants have become Semi regulars stopping in for a Beer or a Chili dog on the weekends or after weekday Job Hunts. Americans often buy Beers for the emigres Kern said. Some West germans however resent that their taxes help support the emigres until they find work. This hostility has stirred at least one heated argument at the bar. But those who live in the former Annabella Haus say they feel Safe there. And they re amused about its torrid past. Quot i heard a Little bit about what it used to be Quot said Melitta a 59-year-old soviet woman who lives in the building with several relatives. Quot but it s no problem. It s very tangling with Freedom by Deedee Arrington Doke Kaiserslautern Bureau the confusing pressures of life in the West were too much for Ingo s parents. Early one saturday they returned to East Germany and a familiar Way of life. Quot i have no idea what i m going to do Quot said Ingo 17, As he watched a slapstick cartoon in a emigre Center in Einsiedler Hof West Germany a suburb of Kaiserslautern. His Brown eyes tired from crying rarely left the to set. He dragged on his cigarette in Short deep breaths. Quot my parents asked me if i wanted to stay or go. I Don t want to go Back. I want to stay and Start my own life. I have a married sister in Karlsruhe. Maybe i can go find her abruptly he left the room. A leap across Europe a East West Borders is less romantic than it first appeared six months ago. There s red tape As tangled and confining As any of the barbed wire Border barriers once were. Those who arrive from Poland Hungary or Romania for example must also grapple with a language of which they know Little if anything although they claim their ethnic roots a sometimes going Back generations and difficult to document a Are German. Then the emigres must reckon with West germans resentment at picking up the Tab. For East germans there san additional image Battle to fight. Because they previously worked under production quotas and Deal with Supply shortages West germans consider them unmotivated workers. Ingo and his family were among the first East bloc emigres to be housed in a former bordello near Kaiserslautern that now serves As temporary quarters As they look for jobs and permanent housing. The building is an improvement from the Camps a Quot production lines a As one emigre termed them a where they stayed Early in their relocation to West Germany. Nonetheless uncertainties related to Job searches As Well As and adjusting to differences in the West make the transition Tough Ingo for example studied animal husbandry in East Germany. As far As he knows there s Little demand for such skills in West Germany. Quot i just want a Job a color to and to live a regular life Quot said Manfred a 43-year-old East German who Hopes to find work As an electronic Engineer. Stefan 20, and Markus 18, Are Brothers from East Germany s Erfurt Region. The trappings of Western pop culture a a stereo Boom Box a Walkman cassette player Dereche Mode and Rick Astley cassette tapes and High tech athletic shoes a stand out in the sterile whiteness of their bedroom sitting room. Quot we have to watch where we spend our said Stefan the More serious of the two about the welfare Money they receive. The Brothers like their quarters in the former Annabella Haus although they wish it were located closer to Kaiserslautern s town Center. Bus fare to town is 2 Marks or about $1.20, each Way. But Stefan and Markus plan to stick it out and look for work As a machinist and a Wood products worker respectively. If they done to find work in their Fields that s of too. Quot its hard for the older ones a a Stefan said. Quot but for me in Myoung. I can change i can do the stars and stripes a a a Page 15
