Aug 19, 1989-1989
Austria, Hungary
Pan-European Picnic Protest
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ACTIVISTS/ACT.GROUPS/DESCRIPTION OF THE GROUP
Hungarians, Austrians, and East German citizens
TARGET
Soviet Union's Iron Curtain Policy
WIDELY HELD BELIEF
People should not be separated by walls.
CASE NARRATIVE
Issue and Opponent: Beginning in May of 1989, Hungary decided to start easing border restrictions. In June of 1989, foreign ministers of Hungary and Austria cut the barbed wire fencing that separated their border. This symbolic act started the campaign to end communist governments across Central and Eastern Europe. On August 19, 1989, a Pan-European picnic was planned on the Austro-Hungarian border in a symbolic opening of the Iron Curtain.
Dilemma Action: Thousand of Austrians and Hungarians, along with several hundred East Germans, gathered at the border fence to celebrate solidarity and friendship. Activists created and distributed flyers that provided the details for the symbolic meeting of these three groups. They were specifically targeting immigration rules enforced by the Soviet Union’s Iron Curtain between East and Central Europe. The people of Austria, Hungary, and East Germany wanted to reclaim their land and open their borders.
Outcome: The authorities did not know how to respond to several thousand people having a picnic, which is why this could be considered a dilemma action. The authorities did not punish the activists for gathering and crossing country borders.
PRIMARY STRUGGLE/GOAL
NONVIOLENT TACTICS USED
DA TACTICS USED
Symbolic reclamations
CASE NARRATIVE WRITER
SUCCESS METRICS
10 / 12
(CONC) Concessions were made
(EREP) Dilemma action got replicated by other movements
(MC) Media Coverage
(MSYMP) Media coverage was sympathetic to the activists
(OR) Opponent response
(PS) Dilemma action built sympathy with the public
(PUN) Punishment favored the activists
(REFR) Dilemma action reframed the narrative of the opponent
(RF) Dilemma action reduced fear and/or apathy among the activists
(SA) Dilemma action appealed to a broad segment of the public
PART OF A LARGER CAMPAIGN
2 / 3
Encouraged more participants to join the movement
Internally replicated by the same movement
RESOURCES
Project documentation
Dilemma Actions Coding Guidebook
Case study documentation
Dilemma_Actions_Analysis_Dataset
SOURCES
Walker, Shaun. 2019. “How a pan-European picnic brought down the iron curtain,” The Guardian. Retrieved July 21, 2023. (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/aug/18/how-a-pan-european-picnic-brought-down-the-iron-curtain-hungarians-austrians).
Oliynyk, Kateryna. 2019. “September 11, 1989: When Hungary Tore A Hole In The Iron Curtain,” Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty, September 10. Retreived July 21, 2023. (https://www.rferl.org/a/hungary-1989-east-germany/30156892.html).
McLaughlin, Daniel. 2019. “A Hungarian border guard, 600 East Germans and a picnic that split the Iron Curtain,” The Irish Times, August 16. Retrieved July 21, 2023. (https://www.irishtimes.com/news/world/europe/a-hungarian-border-guard-600-east-germans-and-a-picnic-that-split-the-iron-curtain-1.39883160.
BBC. 2019. “Cut the Iron Curtain’: Germany’s 1989 freedom picnic,” Retrieved July 21, 2023. (https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-49395808).
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