The newspaper quoted one lawyer, Thomas Walther, as saying many of the complainants were "just as old as the accused and expect justice to be done". German media say the trial is expected to be one of the last concerning crimes committed during the Nazi era. The survivors and perpetrators are now very old.
About , people were imprisoned at the Sachsenhausen camp between and Political opponents, prisoners of war and persecuted groups were among those detained there by the SS, Nazi Germany's foremost security agency. The Sachsenhausen museum says tens of thousands of prisoners died at the camp as a result of hunger, disease, forced labour, extermination operations and other causes.
Germany has been pursuing former Nazi camp workers since a landmark ruling in that convicted a former guard, John Demjanjuk, as an accessory to mass murder. Thursday's trial was especially important for 17 co-plaintiffs, who include survivors of Sachsenhausen. Christoffel Heijer was six years old when he last saw his father: Johan Hendrik Heijer was one of 71 Dutch resistance fighters shot dead at the camp. Leon Schwarzenbaum, who is a year-old survivor of Sachsenhausen, said this was the "last trial for my friends and acquaintances and my loved ones who were murdered" and he hoped it would end in a final conviction.
There was widespread frustration at Josef S's refusal to give evidence. Thomas Walther, the lawyer acting for the co-plaintiffs, said he was not surprised but hoped he would change his mind. There were 3, guards at Stutthof concentration camp alone, and only 50 were convicted. Bruno Dey was convicted of complicity in mass murder there last year and given a suspended sentence,.
Only last week, a Nazi secretary at the Stutthof camp, Irmgard Furchner, was due to go on trial north of Hamburg but escaped from a nursing home hours beforehand. She was eventually caught in Hamburg and her trial was rescheduled for 19 October. She was released from custody earlier this week. Even before I was 10 years old. But we liked the uniform. We went along with it, because we enjoyed it — putting on the uniform and going on marches. But the innocence was a ruse.
From a young age, they were being taught to hate. A disgusting Jew with dirty long hair and a hat, behind the counter. Next to him, a blond German girl with a white apron. To comment you must now be an Irish Times subscriber. The account details entered are not currently associated with an Irish Times subscription. Please subscribe to sign in to comment. You should receive instructions for resetting your password.
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