GIFT FOOD FOR EAST GERMANS

Press, Volume LXXXIX, Issue 27131, 29 August 1953, Page 7

GIFT FOOD FOR EAST GERMANS

POLICE BREAK UP DEMONSTRATIONS

BERLIN, August 27. The West Berlin police detained 80 of a crowd of 300 demonstrators who tried to disturb the free food distribution today, police headquarters said tonight. The demonstrators gathered round a food distribution point in the British sector Tiergarten borough, shouted Communist propaganda slogans and fired off leaflet-carrying rockets. The police dispersed the crowd. Small-scale disturbances were regorted from other distribution points, ut the police coped with them all without making arrests. About 150,000 parcels were issued today—the first day of distribution in the second American-German food aid programme for East Germans and East Berliners. The trek of shabbily-dressed women carrying cardboard boxes, paper and string bags and cases started soon after dawn, and at the 16 distribution points in West Berlin parcels were ready for every East Berliner and East German who could give some kind of identification. They had formulated plans for outwitting the Communist People’s Police. Some brought large labels issued by the German State co-operative stores, which they stuck on their food parcels in the hope that it would fool the East German police on the look out for “traitors” bringing home the free food.

Others said they would store their parcels with friends in the Western sector and collect them when it was safer.

Hundreds more dumped their parcels at the local fire brigade headquarters, saying that they would come back for them when the police were less active.