Up until now, the multifacetted forms of involvement in the round table talks held at district level in East Germany in 1989/90 have been overshadowed by the achievements of the Central Round Table talks in Berlin. The true significance of the district round table talks has been underestimated, however. This study looks at the role and function of the 15 district round table talks held during the East German transition process, and their specific contribution to democratisation at regional level. Their tasks and working methods, but especially their direct influence and capabilities were extremely varied. This alone testifies to the diverse nature of the processes that took place during the few months of "bottom-up democratisation", which, if nothing else, is also an expression of an independent democratisation of the GDR, shaped by civil society activities.

Dr. phil. Francesca Weil war bis 2002 als wissenschaftliche Mitarbeiterin am Historischen Seminar der Universität Leipzig beschäftigt. Seit 2003 arbeitet sie am Hannah-Arendt- Institut für Totalitarismusforschung e.V. an der Technischen Universität Dresden. Sie leitet das Forschungsfeld »Nationalsozialismus«.