This article examines how authoritarian leaders respond to citizens seeking exit opportunities abroad.

It explores the case of communist East Germany, analyzing their use of imprisonment as a tool against emigration.

When economic prospects in West Germany improved during the Cold War, we find that East German authorities actually increased arrests and imprisonments of those attempting to cross illegally ("exit prisoners")

The study uses occupation-specific data from reassembled archives to show this pattern.

It also highlights how access to West German television provided crucial information shaping these policies.

This research demonstrates the impact of global economic disparities on internal politics, particularly in authoritarian states.