Drive to Nab Last German Nazis to Begin in January

[Mark Weiser]

Sun Oct 24, 8:13 AM ET
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/ad...&e=24&u=/nm/20041024/ts_nm/germany_nazis_dc_7

BERLIN (Reuters) - The Nazi-hunting Simon Wiesenthal Center will begin a campaign in January to flush out the last surviving Nazi war criminals in Germany, the head of the center's Jerusalem office said Sunday.



Efraim Zuroff said the campaign will finally begin after several delays on January 27, the anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz concentration camp in Poland.



The campaign is part of the Jewish group's "Operation Last Chance," a drive which has been underway across eastern Europe to catch World War II criminals who took part in the Holocaust.



The center is racing against time as both the perpetrators and survivors of war crimes grow old and die. Zuroff told Reuters last year there was a "window of opportunity" of three to five more years to catch Nazi criminals.



The center planned to offer $12,630 for information leading to prosecution of Nazi war criminals, Zuroff said.



He said it was difficult to estimate how many suspected war criminals were still at large. But he believed that it could number in the thousands.



"It's difficult to estimate but there's no question in my mind that at least several dozen people could be prosecuted," Zuroff said.



"The key is the testimony of fellow perpetrators and that is very difficult to achieve," he added.



Britain this year awarded an honorary knighthood to Simon Wiesenthal, who is in his nineties, for "a lifetime of service to humanity" pursuing Holocaust perpetrators.



He spent the best part of five decades tracking down more than 1,000 Nazi war criminals responsible for the mass murder of Jews and played a role in the capture of Adolf Eichmann, in charge of the deportation of million of Jews to death camps.

 

[OUMoose]

Very interesting. One wouldn't, at first glance, think these people would be hard to find due to age and health issues.

Then again, I'm sure if they amassed some sort of wealth, anonymity wouldn't be too difficult.

Definitely something worth looking into.

 

[Ender]

Very interesting. One wouldn't, at first glance, think these people would be hard to find due to age and health issues.

Then again, I'm sure if they amassed some sort of wealth, anonymity wouldn't be too difficult.

Definitely something worth looking into.

Plus they can run very fast anymore...*G

 

[Flatlander]

This may not be a popular question, but, how necessary is it to hunt down men who likely no longer pose a threat to anyone, and will likely be dead in the next few years anyway? Is this a practical way to spend money?

 

[Mark Weiser]

Flatlander the Jewish people do not easily forgive when they(Nazi's) murdered 1000's of us. So I think for us as a whole(Jewish People worldwide) we will hunt down those who murdered our families and friends and bring them to justice.

 

[Tgace]

This may not be a popular question, but, how necessary is it to hunt down men who likely no longer pose a threat to anyone, and will likely be dead in the next few years anyway? Is this a practical way to spend money?

I guess that as long as there are people alive who remember the Holocaust, they will always want justice....who could blame them.

 

[Flatlander]

I guess that as long as there are people alive who remember the Holocaust, they will always want justice....who could blame them.

Of course, I can't begrudge them that.

Flatlander the Jewish people do not easily forgive when they(Nazi's) murdered 1000's of us. So I think for us as a whole(Jewish People worldwide) we will hunt down those who murdered our families and friends and bring them to justice.

But is it productive? I understand the motivation, but not the practicality.

Realistically speaking, since the holocaust, global awareness and intolerance toward anti-semitism has certainly increased. Perhaps we are now, with the gift of hindsight, better prepared as humankind to disallow this type of hatred from reaching the extremes it has in the past.

I'm merely wondering if continuing the hunt for people who will likely be dead of natural causes in the not too distant future is a little too much about revenge.

Listen, I know this is a really sensitive subject, and I would like to approach it respectfully, if I can.

 

[Mark Weiser]

It is difficult to understand the driving force behind the need for justice when you have not either experienced that time or sat and listened to other speak of it and the emotional responses of recalling lost realitves and friends. In the Jewish Traditions we have a ceremony that we remember our lost loved ones with a candle lighting ceremony and remember them and the contributions and impact on our lifes.

We also have a National day of Rememberence in realation to this time. It is engrained into our memories and our hearts. It is difficult to forget.

 

[Zepp]

Flatlander,

I think the question you've asked is an important one. I've often wondered myself if what we humans like to call "justice" is merely just an animal desire for vengeance. However in this case, I can definitely see one practical reason for pursuing these criminals.

The Holocaust was not the first attempted genocide, and it certainly hasn't been the last, but it is quite possibly the most successful mass murder in human history. Something all genocide attempts and ethnic cleansing campaigns have in common is that they are carried out by groups (militias, armies, angry mobs, etc.), not just individuals. One of the methods we have of preventing such tragedies in the future is to demonstrate to the world that the individuals involved in such crimes can and will be singled out and held individually responsible.

Hunting down the remaining Nazi war criminals isn't the best deterrent against genocide, but it's one piece of the solution. As a Jew, personally, I've always felt a Jewish duty to try to prevent other people from suffering the same tragedies that we have.

(Ok, it's nearly 2 am here, and I've spent way too long on this post. Good morning everybody.)

 

[Flatlander]

These justifications are quite evident to me, and I completely understand them. It seems absolutely reasonable that:

One of the methods we have of preventing such tragedies in the future is to demonstrate to the world that the individuals involved in such crimes can and will be singled out and held individually responsible.

I would also like to add that I find this:

I've always felt a Jewish duty to try to prevent other people from suffering the same tragedies that we have.

to be a most noble and unselfish committment.

Nonetheless, the issue for me raises a peculiar paradox which is the origin of my question. My understanding is that Jewish people identify themselves as such with respect to their ancestry as well as their common spiritual persuasion. I claim no specific knowledge of this religion, but posit that in very general terms, many of the precepts and fundamental values do not vary significantly from Christianity. This supposition leads me to further question, if foundational principles of Judaism include forgiveness, "turning the other cheek", and the possibility of one to be redeemed through repentance, is the "race against time" over the "window of opportunity" of the next "three to five years" to hunt extremely senior citizens down and hold them to account for the crimes they committed 63 years ago a necessary endeavour?

I don't think that this will necessarily deter any and all potential war criminals from thinking twice before committing future horrors, and deterrence seems to be the only practical reason behind this "hunt". Maybe I'm wrong.

Anyway, that's all I really wanted to say. I in no way sympathize with these criminals with regard to what they have done. For those that have died without ever having to answer to the world for their past, I sincerely hope that their minds have been consumed with lifelong shame. I hope that they have been able to, with the wisdom that comes from age and experience, truly understand their contribution to mass suffering, and really internalize that humiliation.

 

[Ronald R. Harbers]

Among some cultures there is no word 'Justice', nevertheless, there is a certain practice among the American Indians as evidenced in the Lakota phrase, Wowa un sila, "A heart full of pity for all."I will be glad when all those old Germans are finally at rest.