Half-Million in Leipzig Demand Reforms

BERLIN--A half-million East Germans thronged the streets of Leipzig in a hard, cold rain last night to demand free elections and unlimited freedom to travel abroad.

More than 135,000 people rallied in other cities, including Schwerin, Halle, Cottbus, Dresden and Karl-Marx-Stadt, the official news agency ADN reported.

While East Germans at home protested, mass flight continued. ADN said 23,200 citizens had gone to West Germany since the suspension of exit rules Saturday.

Lutheran Church sources said some marchers in Leipzig shouted, "The Wall must go!"--demanding demolition of the Berlin Wall, symbol of East German repression for three decades.

ADN said banners demanding "Free elections" and "Travel law without restrictions" waved above the crowd, and others challenged Communist Party supremacy.

It said "several hundred thousand" people took part in the biggest rally so far in Leipzig, where some of the largest protests of the pro-democracy campaign have been held.

Michael Turek, a Lutheran pastor in the southern industrial city of 650,000, said by telephone about 500,000 people marched. A rally Saturday in East Berlin, where the crowd was estimated at one million, was the largest protest in the communist nation's 40-year history.

Members of New Forum, the largest pro-reform group, addressed the crowd in Leipzig, ADN said.

Dresden's march was authorized by authorities and led by Mayor Wolfgang Berghofer and the reformminded local party chief, Hans Modrow. ADN said it was the first officially approved demonstration in the city.

Earlier yesterday, the government published a new draft law that is expected to take effect before Christmas and will permit travel abroad for up to 30 days a year.

Flight through Czechoslovakia continued and people who stayed behind said they were unimpressed by reforms introduced by Egon Krenz, the president and Communist Party chief who last month replaced his hard-line mentor, Erich Honecker.

Church sources said some marchers in Leipzigshouted, "Egon, who elected you?"

This year about 175,000 East Germans--more than1 percent of the population--have moved to WestGermany by emigrating legally, escaping or failingto return from approved trips abroad. West Germanygives them automatic citizenship and help instarting over.

Although the new law would allow travel abroad,East Germans pointed out it retains old provisionsgiving authorities the right to refuse passportsfor vague reasons.

It also does not address the problem offinancing such travel. The East German mark is notconvertible and lack of foreign currency couldmake a legal trip impossible.

"Who is going to pay for all this? Who has thatmuch money?" said a cook in a restaurant on theUnter den Linden boulevard of East Berlin.

East Germans poured into Czechoslovakia aftertheir government lifted a month-old ban on travelto the neighboring Warsaw Pact ally, still theonly nation East Germans can visit withoutofficial permission.

By the time the ban was removed, 5000 EastGermans had gathered at the West German Embassy inPrague. Special trains took the East Germans fromthe embassy to the West German border andthousands of others drove through Czechoslovakiain personal cars.

The unexpected decision to let the refugees outthrough Czechoslovakia created the first directroute to the West since the Berlin Wall was builtin August 1961. Authorities have said the routewill remain open until the travel law takeseffect.

Many East Germans, including oppositionleaders, reacted cooly to the draft law.

Sebastian Pflugbeil, a founder of New Forum,said, "Travel is not the primary problem in EastGermany. Too many have left the country already."

He said on the West Berlin radio station RIAS,"The leadership must make other steps to prove itis earnest in its reform efforts and to win thetrust of the people. The tension between thepeople and the party has never been so great astoday.