Merkel says Hitler's rise 80 years ago 'must be a constant warning'
Tyrant's rise to power 80 years ago reminds us that freedom needs to be defended, says Merkel
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Adolf Hitler's rise to power 80 years ago should be a persistent reminder to Germans that democracy and freedom cannot be taken for granted.
Merkel was speaking on Wednesday at the inauguration of an exhibition in Berlin to commemorate eight decades since Hitler became chancellor on January 30, 1933 - an anniversary that has aroused a significant amount of interest in Germany.
"Human rights don't assert themselves. Freedom doesn't preserve itself all alone and democracy doesn't succeed by itself," Merkel said.
"That must be a constant warning for us, Germans," she added in reference to Hitler's arrival at the chancellery.
The exhibition, "Berlin 1933. On the Path to Dictatorship", is on a site charged with history as the former headquarters of the Gestapo, the secret police of the Nazi regime.
It now houses The Topography of Terror, an open-air documentation centre whose exhibition traces Hitler's first months in power through photos, newspapers and posters.