Krenz Discusses Aid With Bonn Envoy : East Germany: The offer of economic help hinges on free elections and other reforms.

East German leader Egon Krenz and reformist Prime Minister Hans Modrow met Monday with a special West German emissary to discuss economic aid from Bonn as another major demonstration for reform was mounted in Leipzig.

Rudolf Seiters, West German Chancellor Helmut Kohl’s chief of staff, spent the day in East Berlin unveiling his government’s offer, which is conditional on East German guarantees of free elections, multiple political parties and a free-market economy.

Later, at a joint news conference, Krenz called his talks with Seiters “solid,” and Modrow expressed hope that an economic “partnership” could be forged between the two Germanys.

Meanwhile, a crowd of protesters estimated at more than 200,000 marched in Leipzig late Monday, demanding free elections and expanded political reforms. Another 40,000 people turned out in Karl-Marx-Stadt, while tens of thousands more demonstrated in Dresden and Neubrandenburg, according to the East German news agency ADN.

The Leipzig marchers also called for the country’s Communist leaders to be put on trial for past policies and, for the first time, urged an open vote on reunification of the two Germanys. Some banners carried the slogan: “Germany--a Single Fatherland.”

Seiters said he expects a law on free elections, under which the Communists could lose their constitutionally guaranteed monopoly on power, to be approved next year.

“I have the impression that the constitutional change and the new voting law will be approved next spring,” he said at the news conference with Krenz and Modrow. “I have the impression that Article 1 of the constitution (which guarantees the Communists’ leading role) will be changed.”

On Monday, Krenz himself appeared on East German television to explain the weaknesses of the Communist Party, declaring: “One of the failings of the past was that we didn’t listen to the signals from the basic ranks of the party.”

He conceded that East Germany had relied too much on Stalinist dogma, saying, “One basic evil of the last 40 years was not to have got away from Stalin’s past.”

But he insisted that capitalistic free enterprise is not for East Germany. “Anyone who wants to use reforms in order to bring back capitalism has got no chance with us,” he said.

However, Krenz said he would give up his post as party leader if the special Communist Party congress next month chooses to oust him.

He added that no specific date has been set for a summit with Kohl that also is being planned for next month. Kohl’s visit will be the first to East Berlin by a West German chancellor.

In Paris, French President Francois Mitterrand said he will visit East Germany after next month’s party congress.

Meanwhile, a well-known West German opinion poll said Monday that the opening of the East German borders has made East Germans more inclined to favor a unified country.

The survey by the Wickert Institute in Tuebingen said 67% of 1,490 East Germans queried after the Berlin Wall was opened Nov. 8 said they wanted a merger of the two Germanys. Before the frontier was breached, a similar poll showed that 59% of East Germans were in favor of reunification.

A statement released by the polling institute contended that the increase reflected the East Germans’ new ability to view West Germany firsthand.

“Many came with a false picture and allowed their own eyes to persuade them that our economic and social system is worth striving for,” it said.

The same poll said that 89% of East Germans and 96% of West Germans wanted Krenz’s immediate resignation, while 61% of West Germans approve of Modrow.