WI : Helmut Kohl died during his 1988 secret trip to DDR?

[Meordal]

The summer of 1988 hummed with the secret machinations of history. Chancellor Helmut Kohl, under the guise of a mundane business trip, embarked on a clandestine journey to the East German Democratic Republic. Two years prior, during Honecker's visit to Bonn, Kohl had secured this secret visit under three crucial conditions: absolute media blackout, no forced interactions with GDR officials, and most importantly, the Stasi's complete exclusion.

Kohl, ever the strategist, meticulously planned his escape from Stasi surveillance. In Gotha, Erfurt, and Dresden, he meticulously slipped away from his East German security detail, venturing into the streets to meet the everyday citizens. The East Germans, many bearing gifts and expressing their yearning for reunification, caught Kohl by surprise. This wasn't just a political maneuver; it was a deeply personal journey fueled by his wife's East German heritage and his desire to understand the lives of a divided nation.

He spoke with bakers, teachers, and factory workers, their faces etched with a mixture of resignation and hope. An elderly woman in Dresden, her voice trembling, confided in him, "We long for the day the Wall falls, Herr Kohl. We long to be part of Germany again." Kohl, moved by their quiet defiance, promised to never forget their stories, their struggles, their dreams.

Disaster struck near Gotha. The driver, overwhelmed by the weight of the secret mission and the oppressive atmosphere, lost control. The car careened off the road, a sickening crunch echoing through the silent forest. Kohl, thrown from the wreckage, quickly succumbed to his injuries before reaching the hospital.

What will happen now?

Sources :

1. Welt article : https://www.welt.de/geschichte/arti...seine-Bewacher-von-der-Stasi-brueskierte.html

2. Arte documentary on this journey

 

[NoMommsen]

What will happen now?

Aside me performing a a dance of joy and relief when news get out ... after a moment of shock, then sob ofc 😬

Outraged by the perceived incompetence or even conspiration (Oooh there will be a plethora of cpnspiration theories 🤪)to cause this 'accident' there will be demonstrartons against the GDR regime starting even earlier accompanied by similar demonstrations in the FRG for punishing the 'responsibles' in charge.

Despite Genschman

as vice-chancellor taking control these protests can't be 'sufficiently' suppressed/covered up and diplomatically 'soothed'.
However he manages to achieve reunification even somewhat earlier and to other (better) conditions.
Esp. in that the reunification process has much more time to be conducted and NOT ending as a simple occupation and conquest by the FRG.

Without the "Bundesbirne" (common nickname of Herrn Kohl 'Union Pear' due his ... characteristical body shape) also the GDR-CDU fares far from as good within the last Volkskammer election as it did IOTL. ITTL the SPD and the Bündniss 90 (yet not 'unified' with the west-german 'Grüne') fare much better with the SPD ending 'on par' with the CDU and its miserable appendices DA and DSU.
Also MUACH better does ITTL the "Bund Freier Demokraten" (Union of free democrats) of the 'liberal' parties subsidized by the west-german FDP as the "GENSCHMAN"-fandom-focus which was even IOTL rather 'independent' from its western godfatherparty in NOT joining the so-called 'alliance for Germany' of the Kohl-boot-licking-CDU.
The new goverment will be an SPD (of the GDR) , SED-PDS, Liberals goverment with some 'toleration' by Bündniss 90. ... the latter two might be exchanged as well (something along such lines). ... thogh it might take some longer discussions of the then SP heads Martin Gutzeit and Markus Meckel to be sufficiently convinced that Gregor Gysi won't aim at rebuilding the GDR.

This goverment would still issue a 'Verfassungsgrundsätzegesetz' (Constitutional principles law) as an amendement to the existing constitution still as a stop gap before ... larger changes.
This goverment would also by'n'large conclude with the FRG some "Währungs-, Wirtschafts- und Sozialunion" (currency-, economy- and socialunion) treaty. ... though perhaps with some more toads to be swallowed by the westeners (which IMHO they would do as no such treaty would cost them even more).

However ITTL the Unification-Treaty ... would be a VERY different beast and take MUACH longer to be conclude. In essence it would actually happen what originally was planned:
a NEW constituent assembly will work out a NEW German Constitution (which would still bear a LOT of resemblance to the FRG Grundgesetz) but very likely with much more citizen-participation like more and easier plebiscites on more levels of political administration/organisation, probably also some more 'rights' to be included regarding equal gender status and/or free children care, etc..
The negotiations for the treaty might go until the end of 1990 comming into effect on ... 01.January 1991 (?) with the Volkskammer and the Bundestag still 'responsible' for their parts but with Constituent Assembly actually assembling ... March (?) 1991.
The international political safeguarding will happen by the power of GENSCHMAN with maybe kinda 'preliminary' 2 + 4 Vertrag to be finalized after the new german parliament has been established.

Maybe in autumn/winter the new constitution will be presented and finally voted upon by the populace on X-mas time 1991 called the "Weihnachtsverfassung" (Christmas-Constituion) in future times.
... maybe together with the first parlaimental elections as well and the constituent meeting of the first all-german Bundestag in January 1992 the 'birthdate' of the 'New Germany' set at 01.01.1992 😁.