V a t t e n f a l l - Sweden´s other face

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1977. The people of Horno are informed at a village meeting by local district officials and representatives of the brown-coal combine (Braunkohlekombinat: BKK), that Horno will be destroyed and its inhabitants resettled.
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In 1989 the BKK starts buying land in Horno. The villagers' opposition to the destruction of their village community grows. A petition is drawn up und forwarded to the Council of State (DDR) with the demand that Horno be excluded from the area designated for brown coal strip-mining.In the autumn of 1989 a Citizens' Action Group is formed with the objective of saving the village
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At an election meeting in Cottbus in 1990, Chancellor Helmut Kohl pledges the support of the Federal Government for the brown-coal mining industry in Eastern Germany, but at the same time he reiterates that there will be no further destruction of villages.
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In February 1990 around 3000 people from throughout the Guben region demonstrate on Horno Hill against brown-coal mining.
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On May 6th, 1990 the election of the Horno Village Council takes place. Eight members of the Citizens' Action Group are elected to office, among them the new mayor, Bernd Siegert.
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At a meeting of the villagers in March 1991, the Prime Minister of the State of Brandenburg, Dr. Manfred Stolpe, promises, that if the people of Horno decide to save their village and not to relocate, he would not act against their will.
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On the basis of an ordinance dated December 28th, 1992, and for the purpose of safeguarding the constitutional rights of the Sorb/Wend population as enshrined in Article 25 of the Brandenburg Constitution, Brandenburg's Minister of the Interior approves the formation of the Jänschwalde Administrative Authority [Amt Jänschwalde] for an initial period of two years. This Local Authority – the smallest in the State of Brandenburg – comprises the municipalities of Drewitz (pop. 465 / 2.674 ha), Grießen (pop. 193 / 1.162 ha), Horno (pop. 372 / 1.047 ha) und Jänschwalde (pop. 2.376 / 3.239 ha).
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In early March 1993, Michael Gromm calls upon young people in the Guben region to play an active role in environmental protection and in the course of their own futures. 250 young people between the ages of 9 and 24 take part in a meeting on March 6th in the assembly hall of a school in Guben. The Action Group Geil auf Horno [Horny for Horno] is founded. The first Geil auf Horno protest march, in which 400 young people participate, takes place one week before the big Easter demonstration in Horno.
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On March 30th, 1993, the Brandenburg State Government approves the further exploitation of the Jänschwalde strip-mine beyond the Horno Hill, in line with the Outline Mining Plan of the Lausitzer Braunkohle AG (LAUBAG). Prime Minister Stolpe, who breaks his promise to the Horno people and votes in favour of continuing the mine, declares in a statement to the press that the final decision on whether or not to destroy Horno will be left to the LAUBAG Company, "but that whatever happened to Horno, the Horno Hill itself would have to be removed"! He did not say how Horno could be saved, if the Horno Hill, on which the village stands, were to be removed!
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