WORLD : Honecker’s Condition Deteriorates; E. German Leader ‘Wants to Die’
HAMBURG, West Germany — The condition of East German leader Erich Honecker, who underwent gallbladder surgery last month, has deteriorated badly, both medically and mentally, West German news media reported today.
Government officials in Bonn declined comment.
The ZDF television network quoted Western diplomatic sources in Hungary as saying Honecker’s medical condition “has deteriorated considerably. According to information that allegedly comes from Communist Party officials, Honecker has no mental verve and no wish to get better.”
Honecker, 77, has staunchly resisted the reforms sweeping much of the Soviet Bloc. Tens of thousands of East Germans are fleeing their country because of dissatisfaction with the political and economic situation there.
“Critics in the Politburo reportedly are charging that Honecker misjudged the meaning and scope of the wave of refugees,” ZDF said.
ZDF previously had said there were indications that Honecker was “no longer fully able to reason.”
Today, the mass-circulation Bild newspaper said in its front-page headline: “Honecker Wants to Die.”
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