Michael Baumann
Encyclopedia
Michael "Bommi" Baumann was one of the founders of the German organization Movement 2 June
, author of a memoir, and a former militant.
during student unrests.
In the 1960s, he got in touch with the West Berlin
student movement and with Kommune 1
. His views became more radical after various experiences with police, media and bureaucracy. After the death of Benno Ohnesorg
on 2 June 1967, he started to espouse violence as a means of political struggle. Unlike many students in the SDS
(German Socialist Student Union), he also stressed the importance of "direct action
" and "fighting in the metropolises
" to support guerrilla warfare
in the third world
.
After arson attacks against a British airline, which had flown young German Army
deserters from West Berlin
into West Germany, where they would have faced trial, Baumann had to spend some months in prison from February 1970 to summer 1971. With his friend Georg von Rauch
, he joined the Zentralrat der umherschweifenden Haschrebellen ("Central Council of Rambling Hashish Rebels"), one of organisations that founded the Movement 2 June
. The police tried to arrest von Rauch for driving a stolen car, and shot him at the scene. After this incident, Baumann decided to end his participation in urban guerrilla warfare, but he was sought by police as an accomplice.
In 1972 he escaped and traveled to various countries, including Syria
, Iran
, Afghanistan
and India
. In 1975 his autobiography Wie alles anfing ("How it all began") was published (translated as Terror or Love? in 1979). In it he describes his personal evolution into a proponent of urban guerrilla warfare, and comments critically on armed struggle. This edition, from the Munich publishers Trikont
, was seized by police after its appearance because of its supposed incitement to violence. A nationwide search was ordered immediately. In 1976, however, more than 300 left-wing writers and publishers from several European countries, some of them quite prominent, united to protest this censorship. They published an unchanged new edition, which could be sold without problems.
In 1981, Baumann was arrested in London and sentenced to a five-year imprisonment for bank robbery and bombing. While in prison, he wrote another autobiographical book, which appeared after he was released. When documents of the former East Germany were made accessible by the Gauck Authority after the German reunification
, it became known that in 1973, Baumann had written a 125-page report to the East German State Security Service (Stasi) about 94 people within the armed struggle movement, including information on assaults, attacks, weapons, and sexual preferences. Beyond that, 165 pages of interrogation records exist on Baumann. During a period of six weeks, Baumann shared his insider knowledge in 114 hours of interrogation.
Movement 2 June
Movement 2 June was a West German terrorist organization that was based out of West Berlin. Active only from 1971–1980, the anarchist group was one of the few violent groups at the time in West Germany. Although Movement 2 June did not share the same ideology as the Red Army Faction , these...
, author of a memoir, and a former militant.
Biography
Baumann was a construction worker. His nickname derives from his favorite drink, Bommi mit Pflaume (plum-flavoured spirit), although it is often wrongly attributed to his occasional preference for explosivesExplosive material
An explosive material, also called an explosive, is a reactive substance that contains a great amount of potential energy that can produce an explosion if released suddenly, usually accompanied by the production of light, heat, sound, and pressure...
during student unrests.
In the 1960s, he got in touch with the West Berlin
West Berlin
West Berlin was a political exclave that existed between 1949 and 1990. It comprised the western regions of Berlin, which were bordered by East Berlin and parts of East Germany. West Berlin consisted of the American, British, and French occupation sectors, which had been established in 1945...
student movement and with Kommune 1
Kommune 1
Kommune 1 or K1 was the first politically-motivated commune in Germany. It was created on January 12, 1967, in West Berlin and finally dissolved in November 1969....
. His views became more radical after various experiences with police, media and bureaucracy. After the death of Benno Ohnesorg
Benno Ohnesorg
Benno Ohnesorg was a German university student killed by a policeman during a demonstration in West Berlin.- Death :On June 2, 1967, Ohnesorg participated in a protest held near the Deutsche Oper, aimed against the state visit of the Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who was attending a...
on 2 June 1967, he started to espouse violence as a means of political struggle. Unlike many students in the SDS
Sozialistischer Deutscher Studentenbund
Der Sozialistische Deutsche Studentenbund was founded 1946 in Hamburg, Germany, as the college organisation of the SPD...
(German Socialist Student Union), he also stressed the importance of "direct action
Direct action
Direct action is activity undertaken by individuals, groups, or governments to achieve political, economic, or social goals outside of normal social/political channels. This can include nonviolent and violent activities which target persons, groups, or property deemed offensive to the direct action...
" and "fighting in the metropolises
Urban guerrilla warfare
Urban guerrilla redirects here. For the Hawkwind song, see Urban Guerrilla.Urban guerrilla refers to someone who fights a government using unconventional warfare in an urban environment...
" to support guerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare and refers to conflicts in which a small group of combatants including, but not limited to, armed civilians use military tactics, such as ambushes, sabotage, raids, the element of surprise, and extraordinary mobility to harass a larger and...
in the third world
Third World
The term Third World arose during the Cold War to define countries that remained non-aligned with either capitalism and NATO , or communism and the Soviet Union...
.
After arson attacks against a British airline, which had flown young German Army
Bundeswehr
The Bundeswehr consists of the unified armed forces of Germany and their civil administration and procurement authorities...
deserters from West Berlin
West Berlin
West Berlin was a political exclave that existed between 1949 and 1990. It comprised the western regions of Berlin, which were bordered by East Berlin and parts of East Germany. West Berlin consisted of the American, British, and French occupation sectors, which had been established in 1945...
into West Germany, where they would have faced trial, Baumann had to spend some months in prison from February 1970 to summer 1971. With his friend Georg von Rauch
Georg von Rauch
Georg von Rauch was a member of the left-radical Blues-Scene in West-Berlin at the end of the 1960s during the German student movement.-Early life:...
, he joined the Zentralrat der umherschweifenden Haschrebellen ("Central Council of Rambling Hashish Rebels"), one of organisations that founded the Movement 2 June
Movement 2 June
Movement 2 June was a West German terrorist organization that was based out of West Berlin. Active only from 1971–1980, the anarchist group was one of the few violent groups at the time in West Germany. Although Movement 2 June did not share the same ideology as the Red Army Faction , these...
. The police tried to arrest von Rauch for driving a stolen car, and shot him at the scene. After this incident, Baumann decided to end his participation in urban guerrilla warfare, but he was sought by police as an accomplice.
In 1972 he escaped and traveled to various countries, including Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
, Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
and India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. In 1975 his autobiography Wie alles anfing ("How it all began") was published (translated as Terror or Love? in 1979). In it he describes his personal evolution into a proponent of urban guerrilla warfare, and comments critically on armed struggle. This edition, from the Munich publishers Trikont
Trikont
The leftist publishing house Trikont was founded in 1967 in Munich. The name "Trikont" means "three continents", in German a not very common synonym for Third World Countries....
, was seized by police after its appearance because of its supposed incitement to violence. A nationwide search was ordered immediately. In 1976, however, more than 300 left-wing writers and publishers from several European countries, some of them quite prominent, united to protest this censorship. They published an unchanged new edition, which could be sold without problems.
In 1981, Baumann was arrested in London and sentenced to a five-year imprisonment for bank robbery and bombing. While in prison, he wrote another autobiographical book, which appeared after he was released. When documents of the former East Germany were made accessible by the Gauck Authority after the German reunification
German reunification
German reunification was the process in 1990 in which the German Democratic Republic joined the Federal Republic of Germany , and when Berlin reunited into a single city, as provided by its then Grundgesetz constitution Article 23. The start of this process is commonly referred by Germans as die...
, it became known that in 1973, Baumann had written a 125-page report to the East German State Security Service (Stasi) about 94 people within the armed struggle movement, including information on assaults, attacks, weapons, and sexual preferences. Beyond that, 165 pages of interrogation records exist on Baumann. During a period of six weeks, Baumann shared his insider knowledge in 114 hours of interrogation.
In German
- Bommi Baumann: Wie alles anfing ("How it All Began") 1975, ISBN 3-88022-061-1
- Bommi Baumann: Hi Ho. Wer nicht weggeht, kommt nicht wieder ("Hi Ho. If you don't go away, you can't come back") 1987, ISBN 3-455-08655-1
- Bommi Baumann/Till Meyer: Radikales Amerika ("Radical America") 2007, ISBN 3867890102
- Bommi Baumann: Rausch und Terror. Ein persönlicher Erlebnisbericht ("Frenzy and Terror. A personal report") 2008, ISBN 3867890366
In English
- Bommi Baumann: Terror or Love? 1979, ISBN 0714537829
- Bommi Bauman: "How it all Began: The Personal Account of a West German Urban Guerrilla," reissued 1981, ISBN 9780889780453, Arsenal Pulp Press