United they stand

20 years after unification eastern Germany still struggles alongIT COST a fortune, created long-standing grievances on both sides and annoyed the British and French. But most Germans wouldn’t have had it any other way. The 20th anniversary of the unification of Germany, on October 3rd, was an opportunity for the country to look at how East and West have fared since. Some inequalities have proved frustratingly persistent: western states remain far wealthier than their eastern counterparts (although they have been helped by the westward migration of cheap Ossi labour), and unemployment in the East is around twice the rate in the West. No eastern state has seen its population grow in the last two decades; hardly any western states have suffered a decline. Yet polls show that most people, on both sides, continue to believe that unification was the right idea.More Daily charts ...celebrity gossip celebrity pictures female male celebrities