Germany Celebrates 75 Years of Democracy

The anniversary was the occasion of an official act of state in the German capital Berlin. German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier called the Basic Law a “fantastic gift.”

“It is a gift which needs not just to be remembered but nourished, preserved and defended every day in the Republic,” Steinmeier said at the ceremony. “It creates a stable edifice in which people increasingly feel at home and well provided for. It’s a model for peaceful coexistence in a society based on difference – conscious of history and open for the future.”

The Basic Law came into effect on May 23, 1949, in West Germany. The term was chosen to indicate that it was provisional, pending the reunification of Germany. When Germany was reunified in fact in 1990, the document was retained as the expanded Federal Republic of Germany’s constitution.

“The Basic Law is a symbol and guarantor of postwar German democracy, stability, internationalism and economic prosperity,” says Germany Trade & Invest CEO Robert Hermann. “It’s part of what makes today’s Germany such an attractive location for international businesses and a positive force in terms of meeting the global challenges of the future.”