Pupils from Hof visit youth freedom conference

"Longing for freedom" - this was the motto under which pupils from Saxony, Bavaria, the Czech Republic and Poland recently met for the Youth Freedom Conference in Dresden.

Photo: City of Hof — In the picture: the participating students, senior teacher Anne Geyer (FOS/BOS, fourth from right), Jürgen Stader (City of Hof, right) and Steffi Behncke (City of Plauen, left)

Young people from the FOS/BOS Hof and the Schiller-Gymnasium Hof were also among the participants.

As the organizer, the Saxon State Chancellery attached great importance to Hof's participation in view of the long-standing town twinning with Plauen and covered the travel and catering costs. The group was accompanied by senior teacher Anne Geyer from the technical college. Jürgen Stader from the city of Hof: "We would like to thank the principals of the FOS/BOS and Schiller-Gymnasium as well as the two teachers responsible, Anne Geyer and Andrea Bischoff, for their willingness to participate and make it possible for the young people to attend. The city of Hof attaches great importance to the culture of remembrance, and the younger generation in particular should appreciate the value of freedom and democracy and realize that it is necessary to stand up for their preservation on a daily basis. Fundamental rights cannot be taken for granted."

It was certainly an oppressive feeling for some when the moderator pointed out at the beginning of the conference that Russian President Vladimir Putin had already sat in this hall, in which the will for freedom of the former GDR population was now being discussed. The Saxon Minister of Culture therefore emphasized that it was more important than ever for pupils to engage with history. It was a moral obligation for every democrat to remember the people's desire for freedom.

The pupils were able to take part in various workshops on the topic of "freedom" on site. Some of the group attended the film presentation "Cancrin - a story of June 17". The film about the still unexplained fate of a demonstrator who was killed during the popular uprising in 1953 was also shown last year at the German-German Film Festival. Other activities included poetry slams - where young people were able to present texts they had written themselves to the auditorium - and graphic novels, i.e. graphic stories that bring history to life through drawings.

The highlight of the day was the discussion round with Saxony's Minister President Michael Kretschmer. The pupils from Hof confidently took the opportunity to ask the politician their questions. He was so impressed by the commitment and willingness of the young people from Hof to engage in discussion that he "would like to invite a class from Hof to visit him in the state chancellery if he is re-elected in the fall".

On the return journey, all those involved - in addition to the delegation from Hof, pupils from Plauen and Falkenstein were also on the bus - agreed that the visit to the entertaining and informative Youth Freedom Conference was an important boost for the young generation's understanding of democracy.