The East German uprising of German: It involved more than one million people in about localities. The uprising in East Berlin was violently suppressed by tanks of the Soviet occupation forces , and the Kasernierte Volkspolizei. In spite of the intervention of Soviet troops , the wave of strikes and protests were not easily brought under control. There were demonstrations in more than towns and villages after 17 June. The date, 17 June, was celebrated as a public holiday in West Germany up until the German reunification , after which it was replaced by German Unity Day , celebrated annually on 3 October.
Strikes and working class networks, particularly relating to the old Social Democratic Party of Germany , anti-fascist resistance networks and trade unions played a key role in the unfolding of the uprising.
General Secretary Walter Ulbricht expressed the need for "systematic implementation of Socialism"; it was decided that the process of Sovietization should be intensified and the importance of the state expanded. The party was acting on demands made by Soviet premier Joseph Stalin. East Germany originally consisted of five states i. In , these states were abolished and the East was divided into 14 administrative districts called Bezirke.
This division marked an assault on the remaining middle stratum of the republic; farmers who owned land, small business owners, and tradesmen were forced to give up their independence through raised charges.
This decision was made amid the background of the catastrophic economic situation in the country. The economic policies of the SED favored the development of heavy industry at the expense of the production of food and consumer goods, all of which resulted in a severe crisis in supplying the public with goods.
