The families of five victims of the Red Army Faction (RAF) are backing an initiative spearheaded by Bavaria’s Interior Minister, Joachim Herrmann, aimed at erecting a central memorial for the lives lost to the terrorist organization.
Corinna Ponto, daughter of Jürgen Ponto, the head of the Dresden bank killed in 1977, welcomed the proposal, stating to “Bild” that their family would gratefully accept this “obvious and long overdue suggestion”-not just for personal commemoration, but crucially as a warning against the period in history.
Jörg Schleyer, son of Hanns-Martin Schleyer, the employer president murdered in 1977, stressed that it is high time that the victims of RAF terrorism received a central monument. He suggested that this memorial should be completed by the 50th anniversary of the German Autumn next year. “A memorial in the heart of the capital would unmistakably show: Our dead are martyrs of the Federal Republic-their sacrifice must never be forgotten,” he stated.
Michael Buback, son of Siegfried Buback, the federal prosecutor murdered in 1977, also supported the memorial initiative but coupled his support with a further demand: “While I can only support an initiative for the honorable remembrance of the RAF victims, I find the clarification of all murders attributed to the RAF even more important.”
Clais von Mirbach, son of Andreas Baron von Mirbach, the defense attaché killed in the 1975 attack on the German embassy in Stockholm, argued for memory, noting that even though the RAF holds little public prominence, terrorism itself remains alarmingly relevant today.
Monika Schumann, widow of Jürgen Schumann, a pilot killed in 1977 by PFLP terrorists during the hijacking of the Lufthansa plane “Landshut” in South Yemen, highlighted the inherent responsibility of the state. She emphasized that remembering the murders and their victims is fundamentally the state’s duty, “especially since it primarily involves people who served this state.”
RAF expert and author Butz Peters also advocated for a central monument. He proposed the inscription: “Our democracy cannot be destroyed by murder, manslaughter, and other violent acts,” while suggesting either Berlin, the birthplace of the RAF, or Stuttgart, given its historical significance to the terrorist group, as potential locations.
