Renate Werwigk-Schneider has experienced what it means to live in a dictatorship: The now 85-year-old suffered repression early on due to her involvement in the church. She was imprisoned twice in the GDR - because she wanted to leave the country that offered her no freedom. It was only after her release in 1968 that she was able to lead the life she wanted in West Germany.

In conversation with Dorothee Fleischmann and Dr. Sarah Bornhorst, she talks about her eventful life and her commitment to freedom and democracy today. Luise Wolfram will read excerpts from her new biography "Ein bisschen Diktatur gibt es nicht" (Westend Verlag).

Dr. Renate Werwigk-Schneider was born in Königs Wusterhausen and studied medicine in East Berlin. As a young woman, she tried to flee the GDR twice and was imprisoned. She was finally ransomed by the Federal Republic of Germany in 1968. Today, she regularly speaks as a contemporary witness to young people and visiting groups about her experiences. She was awarded the Federal Cross of Merit for her commitment in February 2025.

Dorothee Fleischmann works as a literary agent and author in Berlin. She discovered Renate Werwigk-Schneider's life story through an article in the Süddeutsche Zeitung. For the book, she spent many hours talking to her over the course of a year, sifting through her Stasi file, letters and personal documents.

Luise Wolfram was born in 1987 in Apolda, Thuringia. She studied acting at the Ernst Busch Academy of Dramatic Arts. From 2010 to 2015, she was a member of the ensemble at the Schaubühne Berlin. She can currently be seen regularly on television as Tatort detective Linda Selb from Bremen. She has also appeared in numerous feature films.

Moderator: Dr. Sarah Bornhorst, curator for contemporary witness work/oral history, Berlin Wall Foundation