On April 2, 1972, the student supplement "Universitas" of the "Neue Banater Zeitung" published an article entitled "Am Anfang war die Diskussion" ("In the beginning was the discussion"), which reproduced opinions expressed by a group of young poets and included German-language prose from Timișoara. The members of the group were pupils or students of German literature and came from the circle of the German minority in Banat. They formed the German-speaking poetry circle in Romania known as the "Aktionsgruppe Banat" ("Action Group Banat").
The founding members were: Albert Bohn, Rolf Bossert, Werner Kremm, Johann Lippet, Gerhard Ortinau, Anton Sterbling, William Totok, Richard Wagner and Ernest Wichner. The Action Group Banat publicly recited poems and essays with direct reference to the communist regime in Romania. For this reason it was targeted by the "Securitate", and its members were monitored and persecuted.
In October 1975, three members of the group were arrested under the pretext of wanting to escape the country. The security service in Timisoara interrogated them for seven days and seemed more interested in the group's literary activity than in the alleged illegal border crossing. After his release, William Totok was arrested again and remained in prison for nine months.
After the self-dissolution of the group, the founding members of the Banat Action Group, except for Werner Kremm, left the country and emigrated to the Federal Republic of Germany.
Excerpt from Kovacs, Zoltan (2022). Calendar Timișorean File din istoria orașului. Timișoara: Central Dabasi Nyomda Zrt.
Author: Nicolae Șerban
Translator: Nicole Olariu