Forum

The NewsBiscuit Community

Quick links: NewsBiscuit Home • Chat Room • Writers' Room • Top Ten

1. 

   MADJEZ
   

   offline

   Member

   Hopefully this will be taken the right way as an invitation to debate.

   Read recently about a few cases of former concentration camp guards/employees being extradited/charged with war crimes.

   95 year old US man extradited for war crimes.

   The architects and perpetrators of one of the worst genocides in history have quite rightly been tracked down and dealt with over the years but how far down the chain of command is it worth going ? Is this a case of justice finally being done or 'we've run out of serious suspects'.

   Given that most of the WW2 generation have died out the current crop of ‘war criminals’ were teenage conscripts at the very end of the war. Several prominent German industrialists/military leaders who were either directly involved in the genocide or benefitted were out of prison by the late 50s with most of their wealth intact.

   Personally if they find a centenarian who played a serious part in the killing then fine put them in prison and throw away the key but is there anything to be gained from putting a prison camp secretary (who was under 18 at the time) in prison for their part in murdering thousands of people.

   Posted 1 week ago #

2. 

   Titus
   

   online

   Member

   The architects and perpetrators of one of the worst genocides in history have quite rightly been tracked down and dealt with over the years

   This is the more serious issue. How many of them? What was their punishment? How many of them got away with what you rightly refer to as 'one of the worst genocides in history'?

   It's easy to forget that the worst horrors weren't discovered until the war was almost over. Up until then we were making the huge sacrifices of fighting WW2 just for the sake of allied countries which had been invaded, and because we (well, certainly Winston Churchill) were convinced that Adolf Hitler was a wrong 'un and his mates were a bad lot.

   I sometimes wonder with how much more courage, passion and vigour - if that was possible - we would have fought the Nazi regime, if we had known at the time the full ghastliness of what was going on in those camps.

   Posted 1 week ago #

3. 

   deceangli
   

   offline

   Member

   It's a good question, Madj, though not an easy one to debate because of the - completely understandable - strength of feeling.

   I'll stick my own neck out here, and brace for the criticism. I'd happily prosecute those with managerial responsibilities, even if they were 100 years old. If this had been 50 years ago I'd have argued for prosecuting everybody involved - however lowly - because genocide is different, the Holocaust is different, we absolutely must send a message down the ages that it won't be tolerated. Wiesenthal (and others) who hunted Nazis across the globe have my utmost respect.

   However, a 95 year-old who played a minor role - not in any leadership capacity - for a few weeks at the end of the war? Arguably, he was a victim of circumstances.I wouldn't have extradited him.

   Some of the architects got off scot free, by the way - lovely, easy lives in South America. So we shouldn't be too self-congratulatory.

   Posted 1 week ago #

4. 

   Wrenfoe
   

   offline

   Member

   Several prominent German industrialists/military leaders who were either directly involved in the genocide or benefitted were out of prison by the late 50s with most of their wealth intact.

   Very true. One only has to look at those involved with the Wannsee Conference, where the Final Solution was organised. Most that survived the war got off with minor sentences or released for lack of evidence (!).

   I guess I shouldn't hold out hope for Tony Blair to get his comeuppance.

   Posted 1 week ago #

RSS feed for this topic

Reply

You must log in to post.