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| Sibylle Schoenemann / Korea Times photo by Kim Se-jeong |
By Kim Se-jeong
Sibylle Schoenemann, 65, a German film director, spent eight months in an East German prison in 1984 without knowing exactly why she was put behind the bars. Decades later, instead of trying to forget the horrendous experience and move on, the director chose to face it, find out what happened and do something about it.
"All the people who suffered and lost families are wounded people inside and they have no idea about what's going to happen to them," the director said during an interview The Korea Times last week in Seoul. "One had to find a way to forgive. And I hoped [to do so] by telling this story, confronting people and asking them [interrogators and judges], What did you do? Didn't you see what you were doing?"
The film "Locked Up Time" (1991) was screened last weekend in Seoul.
The traumatic memory is still vivid to Schoenemann even though several decades have passed since she was falsely imprisoned in East Germany.
She was born in East Germany and an aspiring film director when she was arrested on a street of East Berlin in November 1984. The charge against her and her husband was obstruction of justice. But the real reason, she later found out, was that "they wanted to make an example" of her. At that time, filmmakers in East Germany were fed up with making propaganda films.
"The situation in the film studio was complicated. The new generation of directors had a new view on reality. They wanted to speak out about the problems and the reality, not about the make-believe that the government wished," she said.
Prior to their imprisonment, the German couple had unsuccessfully attempted to flee to the West and was waiting for the authority's answer to their second attempt to leave.
"They were looking for months to find something to imprison us for. To stop the others (other filmmakers) from following our footsteps, it would be a big political story if all young filmmakers wanted to go to the West. We were unlucky, we had to carry this burden."
In prison, the director was desperate.
"You don't know why (you were imprisoned) and you can't go home. I couldn't do anything but they could do everything to you."
According to her, the worst part was the fact that she couldn't be with her children who were then six and 10 years old. "I couldn't say goodbye to them."
When Schoenemann was released, she found herself in the West. She and her husband were among 41 political prisoners swapped between East and West Germany. She wasn't happy because her children were still in the East and it took another two months to reunite with them.
She started filming her experience after the Berlin Wall fell in 1989. It was a daunting task as she faced another horror.
"I hoped to meet one of them who would say, 'Sorry, I didn't know what I did.' But no one did it to me."
She said forgiveness works in a very special way.
"Forgiveness comes only when those who are responsible for the wrongdoings realize what they did. If they realize and apologize, you don't have to be afraid anymore. Only then, you can forgive. If this doesn't happen, I can't forgive."
Her comment resonates with many in South Korea, particularly old women who were forced into sex slavery for the Japanese military during Second World War. The Japanese government still doesn't recognize it. It also resonates with some North Korean defectors who want justice against their fellow North Korean defectors who tortured them in political prison camps.
Schoenemann also said victims need professional help to get over with the trauma.
"I got help [counselling]. Because West Germany didn't accept East Germany as a state, they always considered we were one Germany. People from the East were treated as citizens, too, in the West. The West took them back in to the family and felt a kind of responsibility. It should be the same here," she said referring to North Korean defectors.
Schoenemann's film achieved unexpected acclaim. It was shown around the world and won many prizes. The director said she didn't expect the success and is happy to help other people through her work.
"Many feel themselves represented in this film. My story is also their story."
